The 50th anniversary season also includes a new season of Now Hear This hosted by Scott Yoo, Remember Me starring David Strathairn, Richard III starring Danai Gurira, and more
Great Performances continues its 50th anniversary season on PBS with Great Performances at 50: Celebrating Broadway’s Best (w.t.), a celebration of Broadway in the past 50 years hosted by two-time Tony Award winner Sutton Foster performed from Lincoln Center’s David H. Koch Theater. Premiering Friday, May 12 on PBS, the concert will include performances by André de Shields, Robyn Hurder, Jane Krakowski, Norm Lewis, Donna McKechnie, Betty Buckley, Jessie Mueller, Chita Rivera, Vanessa Williams and many more. This special concert is followed by the Public Theater’s Free Shakespeare in the Park production of Richard III starring Danai Gurira on Friday, May 19, with an additional program to be announced as part of the series’ annual “Broadway’s Best” lineup. The golden anniversary schedule also follows host Scott Yoo as he travels throughout Europe to explore the wonders and challenges of creation and inspiration in a new season of the critically acclaimed miniseries Now Hear This, beginning April 7. This new season of Great Performances airs concurrently with a fresh season of Great Performances at the Met beginning in March.
“Our mission has always been to provide access to world-class performing arts to Americans nationwide,” said Executive Producer David Horn, who has been with the series since 1979. “We are proud of what the series has achieved these past 50 years, and we look forward to continuing to delight and entertain audiences for many more.”
Since it premiered in 1972-1973 broadcast season on PBS, the preeminent performing arts series has provided an unparalleled showcase of the best in all genres of the performing arts, serving as America’s most prestigious and enduring broadcaster of cultural programming. Throughout its 50 years, Great Performances has earned 67 Emmy Awards and six George Foster Peabody Awards.
50th Season Programming:
Great Performances: Movies for Grownups Awards with AARP the Magazine
Now streaming on pbs.org/moviesforgrownups and the PBS App
Celebrating the best films and performances of 2022 that resonate with older viewers, these Awards honor and encourage filmmaking a grownup state of mind. The ceremony, hosted by Alan Cumming, honors Jamie Lee Curtis with the Career Achievement award and more.
Great Performances: The Magic of Spirituals
Now streaming on pbs.org/gperf and the PBS App
This documentary examines the behind-the-scenes story of Kathleen Battle and Jessye Norman’s famed concert of spirituals at Carnegie Hall on March 18, 1990, with extensive performance clips and new interviews with opera star Angel Blue, Met Opera General Manager Peter Gelb and more.
Great Performances: Remember This
Premieres Monday, March 13 at 9 p.m. on PBS (check local listings), pbs.org/gperf and the PBS App
Adapted from the play by Clark Young and Derek Goldman, Academy Award nominee David Strathairn stars as World War II Polish resistance fighter Jan Karski in this genre-defying one-man story of a reluctant hero and Holocaust witness.
Great Performances: Now Hear This “Piazzolla’s History with Tango”
Premieres Friday, April 7 at 9 p.m. ET on PBS (check local listings), pbs.org/nowhearthis and the PBS App
Tango to Buenos Aires, Argentina, with host Scott Yoo and flutist Alice Dade in the fourth season of the acclaimed miniseries to explore the evolution of composer Astor Piazzolla’s work and the music genre itself as it becomes fused with jazz across time and numerous instruments.
Great Performances: Now Hear This “Schumann: Genius and Madness”
Premieres Friday, April 14 at 9 p.m. ET on PBS (check local listings), pbs.org/nowhearthis and the PBS App
Visit Scotland, Germany and France with host Scott Yoo as he investigates the connection between Robert Schumann’s bipolar disorder and creative genius via experts, musical performances and examining the work of other artists outside the world of music.
Great Performances: Now Hear This “Andy Akiho Found (his) Sound”
Premieres Friday, April 21 at 9 p.m. ET on PBS (check local listings), pbs.org/nowhearthis and the PBS App
Experience the creation of music from this Japanese American composer with host Scott Yoo using “found” instruments. To develop a music video, the two visit New York City and explore the creative process with an interactive light show and more.
Great Performances: Now Hear This “Albéniz: Portraits of Spain”
Premieres Friday, April 28 at 9 p.m. ET on PBS (check local listings), pbs.org/nowhearthis and the PBS App
Discover the inspirations Spain provided composer Isaac Albéniz with host Scott Yoo, guitarist Manuel Barrueco, and pianist Juan Pérez Floristán along with musicians from Albéniz’s birthplace in the Pyrenees mountains as well as Sevilla, Mallorca and more.
Great Performances at 50: Celebrating Broadway’s Best (w.t.)
Premieres Friday, May 12 at 9 p.m. on PBS (check local listings), pbs.org/gperf and the PBS App
Enjoy a show-stopping performance from Lincoln Center’s David H. Koch Theater hosted by two-time Tony Award winner Sutton Foster presenting a revue of milestone shows and songs from 1973 to 2023. With performances by André de Shields, Robyn Hurder, Jane Krakowski, Norm Lewis, Donna McKechnie, Betty Buckley, Jessie Mueller, Chita Rivera, Vanessa Williams and many more, the concert celebration is a living testament to why musical theater continues to resonate so powerfully.
Great Performances: Richard III
Premieres Friday, May 19 at 9 p.m. on PBS (check local listings), pbs.org/gperf and the PBS App
From the Public Theater’s Free Shakespeare in the Park, this bold new production stars Danai Gurira in the title role with direction by Tony Award nominee Robert O’Hara as part of Great Performances’ “Broadway’s Best” lineup. One of Shakespeare’s most indelible villains, Richard is determined to be king, using his brilliant words and dark charm to conceal his dismantling of government and justice to satisfy his lust for power as he manipulates, kidnaps or kills all who stand in his way. This drama from Central Park’s Delacorte Theater explores the muddy middle between political genius and a violent quest for power.
Great Performances: Vienna Summer Night Concert 2023
Premieres Friday, August 25 at 9 p.m. on PBS (check local listings), pbs.org/gperf and the PBS App
Continuing the annual tradition, the world-renowned Vienna Philharmonic is joined by a guest soloist to perform an open-air concert under the direction of a guest conductor from the gardens of Austria’s Imperial Schönbrunn Palace.
Great Performances is produced by The WNET Group. Bill O’Donnell is series producer, Mitch Owgang is supervising producer and Joan Hershey is senior producer; Stephanie Dawson, Bill Kabel and Julie Leonard are producers; Allison Hoag is production assistant, Julia Corbett is associate producer for digital content and Harris Pacey is senior production coordinator. David Horn is executive producer. Great Performances is available for streaming concurrent with broadcast on PBS.org and the PBS App, available on iOS, Android, Roku streaming devices, Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, Samsung Smart TV, Chromecast and VIZIO.
Series funding for Great Performances is provided by The Joseph & Robert Cornell Memorial Foundation, the Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Foundation, the LuEsther T. Mertz Charitable Trust, Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III, the Abra Prentice Foundation, LLC, Jody and John Arnhold, The Starr Foundation, The Philip and Janice Levin Foundation, the Kate W. Cassidy Foundation, the Thea Petschek Iervolino Foundation, Seton J. Melvin, the Estate of Worthington Mayo-Smith, the Jack Lawrence Trust, Ellen and James S. Marcus and Leni and Peter May. Corporate support for the Vienna Philharmonic Concerts is provided by Rolex.
