From Stage to Screen: Sondheim Birthday Concert

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Leonard Bernstein: Debussy September 28 Bernstein conducts Claude Debussy: Images, Prélude à l'apres-midi d'un faune, La Mer Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia Recorded live from the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Rome, 1989. Martha Graham Dance on Film October 26 One of the great artistic forces of the twentieth century, performer, choreographer, and teacher Martha Graham influenced dance worldwide. This film brings us a sampling of her stunning craft. A Dancer’s World (1957), narrated by Graham herself, is a glimpse into her teaching methodology. Appalachian Spring (1958) and Night Journey (1961) are two complete Graham ballets. West Side Story December 28 This romantic musical update of 'Romeo and Juliet' won ten Oscars. The tale of a turf war between rival teenage gangs in Manhattan's Hell's Kitchen and the two lovers who cross battle lines has captivated audiences for four decades. The Stephen Sondheim/Leonard Bernstein score is just one of the reasons. Encore! Great Performances at the Met January 25 This special covers a wide range of operatic ground, from heartbreak to hilarity, delivered by such artists as Natalie Dessay, Plácido Domingo, Renée Fleming and more. Featuring 19 arias and duets selected from the past seasons of Great Performances at the Met broadcasts, performed by today’s greatest opera stars and talents. An Evening with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater February 22 In this studio recording, the bold and exciting Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, brings its distinctive style --dazzling, brash and dynamic, yet graceful and poetic. Included are two stunning dance pieces. "Diving" was Judith Jamison's first major work as a choreographer for Alvin Ailey. The dance evokes a strong feeling for African tribal ritual and is set to hauntingly rhythmic drum music. "Revelations" expresses Ailey's intense feelings for his roots in the South. Here you'll see Ailey's vivid "blood memories" of the blues, spirituals, gospel music, ragtime and folk songs, as well as the hard life of the Southern black during the Depression. Great Opera Arias: A Gala Concert from the Royal Opera House March 22 World-renowned tenor Plácido Domingo is joined by Angela Gheorghiu, Roberto Alagna and a host of other international stars including Susan Graham, in the famously glittering 1996 Gala Concert on the stage of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Asher Fisch conducts the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House in a program of many of the world's best-loved operatic arias with music by composers Sondheim: The Birthday Concert April 26 A rousing celebration of the life and work of one of Broadway's greatest legends - the one and only Stephen Sondheim. For the master composer and lyricist's 80th birthday, many of musical theater's brightest stars gathered to perform more than two dozen sensational numbers from Sondheim's illustrious career. Many of these enduring songs are rarely heard and several are performed by the original Broadway cast members. David Hyde Pierce hosts this magical event with Stephen Sondheim's longtime collaborator Paul Gemignani conducting the New York Philharmonic. The Original Three Tenors Concert May 24 The Three Tenors in Concert, recorded live in Rome in 1990, holds the distinction in the Guinness Book of World Records of being the best-selling classical album of all time. The concert and album, which initiated the Three Tenors phenomenon, had the original purpose of raising funds for the José Carreras International Leukemia Foundation and boosting the career of Carreras, who had only recently recovered from the disease. Zubin Mehta accompanies the singers, leading the orchestras of Maggio Musicale Fiorentino and Teatro dell'Opera di Roma.