Recent News
You have reached the city limits
Chicago Classical Review: “Guerrero displays can-do versatility with Grant Park Orchestra”
“The evening opened with James Stephenson’s zesty paean to his native Chicago, You have reached the city limits. A commission from the Grant Park Music Festival, the ten-minute piece is a high-spirited musical road trip with stops at the city’s landmark blues and jazz outposts…Guerrero allowed each section of the orchestra to blossom fully while in the spotlight. But he melded the changes of mood and texture into a seamless, engaging whole. The players were obviously listening closely to one another, making the piece sound spontaneous and fresh.”
Third Coast Review: “Review: Grant Park Orchestra and Chorus Offers Stephenson, Beethoven, and a Beautiful Requiem by Maurice Duruflé”
“In the piece, Stephenson tells the story of a couple who go on the town and explore Chicago’s blues scenes during various epochs, starting with the 1920s era, à la Jelly Roll Morton, and the 1940s and ’50s, à la Muddy Waters. It then moves on to more modern Chicago musical sounds…The overall effect of You Have Reached the City Limit was stunning.”
Princess and the Pea…
Chicago Tribune: “Joffrey Ballet takes us to Pea Town in a feel-good, wacky fantasy with a cautionary tale”
“an exquisite score from composer James Stephenson”
See Chicago Dance: “Review: The Joffrey Ballet’s “Golden Hour” at Lyric Opera”
“Music by James Stephenson is heroic and whimsical, a complement to scenes where the Princess’ Underlings (Zachary Manske and Davide Oldano) bound menacingly around the local farmers and chase after Pea and her magic Carrot (Maxwell Dawe) companion.”
MaraTapp.org: “Theater Raves”
“Princess and the Pea, this new imagining that a Chicago Symphony Orchestra clarinetist friend told me I couldn’t miss. Australian choreographer Dani Rowe collaborated with American Composer Jim Stephenson to create the story of Penelopea, who lives with her two loving dads in the Pea Town… It goes without saying that every section is ideally danced because, after all, this IS the Joffrey. As I was smiling in the dark, I realized that it is the balletic version of the CSO, a corps of artists so exquisitely excellent that they always make everything as it should be and can get away with anything.”
Gramophone Magazine: “Civitas: Our monthly guide to North American ensembles” (October 2025)
“Civitas has commissioned work from some of Chicago’s most admired composers, including Stacy Garrop and Jim Stephenson.” —Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune Music Critic (retired)
Upcoming Premieres
January 14, 2026 — Quartet for a New Tomorrow, Ensemble Chamarré (World Premiere, Kaunas Lithuania)
January 25, 2026 — Quartet for a New Tomorrow, ROCO (US Premiere)
February 14-16, 2026 — ‘Barcelona’ Clarinet Concerto, with John Yeh
February 16-19, 2026 — ‘Barcelona’ Clarinet Concerto, with Rié Suzuki and the UCF Wind Ensemble
March 6, 2026 — You have reached the city limits, arr. wind ensemble, with “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band, at the 2026 American Bandmasters Association Conference
April 2026 — In Motion, for the Pensacola Symphony
May 2026 — Synthesis Drop, for the Frisco ISD
July 4, 2026 — Freedom Overture for the Boston Pops in celebration of America’s 250th anniversary
Noteworthy Collaborations
Boston Pops — Freedom Overture
Chicago Symphony Orchestra — Concerto for Bass Trombone
San Francisco Ballet — Wooden Dimes Ballet
Joffrey Ballet — Princess and the Pea
Minnesota Orchestra — Concerto for Violin; PILLARS
Grant Park Music Festival — You have reached the city limits