Premieres Friday, May 31 at 9 p.m. on PBS (check local listings), on pbs.org/gperf and the PBS App
Beginning with their first collaboration on “Oklahoma!” in 1943, Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II revolutionized Broadway by integrating music and dance with well-crafted storylines to create a cohesive new form of musical theater. With a string of blockbusters including “Carousel,” “South Pacific,” “The King and I,” “Flower Drum Song” and “The Sound of Music,” the duo garnered 34 Tony Awards along with 15 Academy Awards for their film adaptations. Directed and choreographed by Christopher Gattelli, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s 80th Anniversary features an all-star cast at London’s Theatre Royal Drury Lane, including Michael Ball, Daniel Dae Kim, Maria Friedman, Audra McDonald, Julian Ovenden, Aaron Tveit, Marisha Wallace and Patrick Wilson, with additional surprise appearances by Rita Moreno and Andrew Lloyd Webber.
