CULTURE + ARTS

SPAC Announces 2026 Philadelphia Orchestra Lineup

Josh Groban, Beethoven's Ninth, and much more await this August.

By Natalie Moore

March 16, 2026

Saratoga Performing Arts Center’s 60th anniversary season was already gearing up to be one for the books, what with its all-star Saratoga Jazz Fest lineup and New York City Ballet program. Then, this week, SPAC dropped the schedule for its 2026 Philadelphia Orchestra residency.

“Our 2026 Philadelphia Orchestra season marks a milestone celebration—60 years of extraordinary music at SPAC with the Orchestra,” says SPAC CEO Elizabeth Sobol. “Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, which opened the Orchestra’s first season here in 1966, returns as the centerpiece of this summer’s season, led by Yannick Nézet-Séguin. This monumental work, with its transcendent choral finale, offers our community a stirring experience that celebrates six decades of artistry and the enduring partnership between SPAC and the Orchestra.”

Josh Groban will present a program called Stage, Screen, and Symphony with the Philadelphia Orchestra on August 14.

Beethoven’s landmark symphony, which is coming to the SPAC stage on Saturday, August 15, will feature a star-studded cast including soprano Leah Hawkins, mezzo-soprano J’Nai Bridges, tenor Issachah Savage, and bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green, alongside Albany Pro Musica. And that’s just the beginning. Throughout its two-and-a-half-week residency, the Orchestra will also stage a performance of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons (August 19), present a popular Tchaikovsky program with Philadelphia Orchestra Principal Guest Conductor Marin Alsop (August 5), and perform in concert with Josh Groban. Yes, that Josh Groban: On August 14, the international superstar will present Stage, Screen, and Symphony, a program that showcases his versatility and blends musical theater hits, cinema classics, and symphonic arrangements.

Other big names to team up with the Philadelphia Orchestra in Saratoga this summer include Grammy-nominated indie-folk singer Gregory Alan Isakov (August 22), legendary pianist Emanuel Ax (August 13), and Tony-winning Broadway star Brian Stokes Mitchell (August 7). And of course, SPAC’s popular film nights are back: This year, audiences can catch Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 in Concert (August 8) and Star Wars: A New Hope in Concert (August 21).

“August at SPAC will bring three remarkable vocalists alongside classical music’s most in-demand artists,” says SPAC President Christopher Shiley. “From masterworks and SPAC premieres to programs inspired by the themes of ‘Seasons’ and America’s 250th anniversary, this summer promises to inspire, uplift, and connect our community through music.”

Tickets go on sale for SPAC members today (March 16) and on March 25 for the general public. See a complete list of the Orchestra’s 2026 performances on spac.org.

Natalie Moore

Natalie Moore is the editor of Saratoga Living and Capital Region Living magazines. A native of Ballston Lake, she began her career as an editorial intern at Saratoga Living, and, essentially, never left. In addition to overseeing the creation of the print magazines, she is the main contributor to Saratoga Living After Hours, a Substack newsletter that covers the Spa City’s social scene. In an alternate reality, she is a professional pickleball player.