Skip to main content Skip to footer site map

Lin-Manuel Miranda Live Tweets Broadway’s Best on PBS

SHARE
Great Performances: An American in Paris The Musical

Great Performances: An American in Paris The Musical is streaming now on THIRTEEN and PBS apps. Photo: Johan Persson

On Friday, November 2, Great Performances premiered An American in Paris The Musical as part of the series’ second round of “Broadway’s Best” Friday night programming on PBS.

None other than musical theater star Lin-Manuel Miranda – book, music, and lyric writer of Hamilton and In the Heights creator – surprised everyone by live tweeting the production while watching from his home. And what a treat it was!

Just like all of us, sometimes Miranda has obligations that prevent him from seeing a show he’d love to see on Broadway. In his case, he “worked nights” (starring in Hamilton at the Richard Rogers Theatre on West 46th Street, a two-minute walk from An American in Paris The Musical at the Palace Theatre on Broadway).

That’s why Great Performances is broadcasting amazing Broadway shows on consecutive Fridays! And if you don’t have the luxury of watching television on a Friday night at home, you can stream the program whenever you want starting Saturdays (stream An American in Paris the Musical here).

Miranda paid ballet dancer Robert Fairchild – the leading man – a sly compliment.

And we discovered that Miranda took ballet while a student at Wesleyan University in Connecticut (and that this immensely talented man remains humble).

We’re absolutely grateful for all the love Miranda has shown PBS and THIRTEEN over the years. He was once an intern at THIRTEEN, where Great Performances is produced, and we were proud to debut the behind-the-scenes documentary Hamilton’s America, about how Miranda and his collaborators created Hamilton the musical. He helps get the word out about our programs, as this response to his Tweet shows. Follow @GPerfPBS Melissa, and we’ll remind you about the upcoming Friday shows!

Broadway fan StephS replied to Miranda, showing her own young daughter’s enthusiasm as she danced along with the production on TV.

Maya, who on her Twitter banner advocates for keeping theater alive by making it more accessible (we agree, Maya!), tuned in to watch because she enjoyed the virtual company live-viewing of premieres provides:

On the other side of the country, far far away from Broadway in California, Karen Kolus tweeted back to Miranda with her PBS pick.

We thank Karen for watching our other theater production, too – stream all six of this seasons episodes Shakespeare Uncovered now, including the one that delves into the play “Much Ado About Nothing.”

PBS brings fans together. A theater’s seating is limited, but PBS viewing on television, online and OTT apps has room for everyone. We’re glad we could play a part in giving Lin-Manuel Miranda fans a new shared experience with their theater idol.

Follow and live tweet with Great Performances (@GPerfPBS) and – who knows what stars? – during the next “Best of Broadway” broadcast – Great Performances: Sound of Music, airing national Friday, November 9 at 9 p.m. ET.

Sing along to some of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s best loved hits – “The Sound of Music,” “My Favorite Things,” “Do-Re-Mi,” “Climb Every Mountain,” “Edelweiss,” – in the 2015 live U.K. broadcast version of the beloved musical, starring Kara Tointon as Maria, Julian Ovenden (Downton Abbey) as Captain von Trapp, Katherine Kelly (Mr. Selfridge) as Baroness Schraeder, Alexander Armstrong as Max, and Maria Friedman as the Mother Abbess. Cinematically photographed on adjoining sound stages, the production offers a more naturalistic interpretation of this American musical theater classic.

See the entire schedule of upcoming Friday night “Best of Broadway” shows here.

Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on Thirteen.org

Subscribe to our Newsletter

© 2024 WNET. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

PBS is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization.