-Courtesy of Grapevine PR
photo of Frank DiLella by Robb Sapp
Great Performances – Reopening: The Broadway Revival pulls the curtain back on some of Broadway’s most popular shows, revealing how the New York theater industry undertook the monumental process of turning the lights back on after its longest hiatus in history due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A music-filled, intimate production told by the people who’ve been achieving the entertainment industry’s largest comeback, Great Performances – Reopening: The Broadway Revival premieres Tuesday, January 18 at 9 p.m. on PBS (check local listings), pbs.org/gperf and the PBS Video app as part of #PBSForTheArts. The film will also encore on Friday, January 21 at 10 p.m. on PBS.
Offering exclusive behind-the-scenes access to shows including Wicked, Aladdin, Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, Jagged Little Pill, The Phantom of the Opera, Waitress and others, the film follows each production’s journey as cast and crew reunite, rehearse and re-stage for their long-anticipated reopening nights.
Hosted by three-time New York Emmy Award-winning journalist and host of “On Stage” on Spectrum News NY1, Frank DiLella (Philly native), the documentary is told by Broadway stars and legends, including 2021 Tony Award winner for Best Actress in a Musical Adrienne Warren (Tina: The Tina Turner Musical), 2021 Tony Award winner for Best Actor in a Musical Aaron Tveit (Moulin Rouge), Tony and Emmy nominee Sara Bareilles (Waitress), Michael James Scott (Aladdin), Tony nominee Elizabeth Stanley (Jagged Little Pill), Alexandra Billings (Wicked), Jawan M. Jackson (Ain’t Too Proud), Jeanna de Waal (Diana: The Musical), Rachel Tucker (Come From Away), Tony nominee Andrew Rannells, Tony nominee Norm Lewis (Chicken and Biscuits), Olivier Award winner Sharon D. Clarke (Caroline, or Change), Tony winner Lea Salonga, Tony winner and Emmy winner Kristin Chenoweth, Tony winner Chita Rivera, Tony winner Laura Benanti, Tony winner David Rockwell and the legendary award-winning composer Andrew Lloyd Webber.
“Great Performances remains committed to telling the survival and now revival stories of how artists have been weathering the pandemic, which we initiated last spring with our first documentary in the #PBSForTheArts campaign, Great Performances: The Arts Interrupted,” said Great Performances Executive Producer David Horn. “After this long performance shutdown, the return of Broadway is a beacon of hope for American arts and culture.”
“When Broadway reopened this past fall, our cameras were granted unprecedented access to these incredible shows and the wonderful actors who bring them to life eight times a week. This hour will take viewers on a journey even we never saw coming,” said Stu Weiss, chief creative officer at Studio City/PXL and executive producer of Great Performances – Reopening: The Broadway Revival.
#PBSForTheArts is a multiplatform campaign that celebrates the arts in America. For more than 50 years, PBS has been the media destination for the arts, presenting dance, theater, opera, visual arts and concerts to Americans in every corner of the country. Previous Great Performances programs include Romeo & Juliet from the National Theatre, The Arts Interrupted, San Francisco Reopening Night, Coppelia and From Vienna: The New Year’s Celebration 2022. The collection of #PBSForTheArts programs is available at pbs.org/arts and the PBS Video app. Curated conversation and digital shorts are also available on PBS social media platforms using #PBSForTheArts.
Throughout its nearly 50-year history on PBS, Great Performances 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. Showcasing a diverse range of artists from around the world, the series has earned 67 Emmy Awards and six Peabody Awards. Previous Great Performances programs include Romeo & Juliet from the National Theatre, The Arts Interrupted, San Francisco Reopening Night, Coppelia and From Vienna: The New Year’s Celebration 2022. The Great Performances website hosts exclusive videos, interviews, photos, full episodes and more. The series is produced by The WNET Group. Great Performances is available for streaming concurrent with broadcast on all station branded PBS platforms, including PBS.org and the PBS Video App, available on iOS, Android, Roku streaming devices, Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, Samsung Smart TV, Chromecast and VIZIO. PBS station members can view many series, documentaries and specials via PBS Passport. For more information about PBS Passport, visit the PBS Passport
A production of Emmy Award-winning marketing and original content producer Studio City/PXL, Great Performances – Reopening: The Broadway Revival is directed by Cody Williams; Stu Weiss, Frank DiLella and Williams are executive producers, Dudley Beene is co-executive producer. For Great Performances, Bill O’Donnell is series producer and David Horn is executive producer.
Support for Great Performances – Reopening: The Broadway Revival is provided by The Joseph & Robert Cornell Memorial Foundation, the Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Arts Fund, the LuEsther T. Mertz Charitable Trust, Jody and John Arnhold, The Philip and Janice Levin Foundation, the Kate W. Cassidy Foundation, the Thea Petschek Iervolino Foundation, Rosalind P. Walter, The Starr Foundation, the Seton Melvin Charitable Trust, the Estate of Worthington Mayo-Smith, and Ellen and James S. Marcus. Additional support is provided by Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III and the Jack Lawrence Trust.
About The WNET Group
The WNET Group creates inspiring media content and meaningful experiences for diverse audiences nationwide. It is the community-supported home of New York’s THIRTEEN – America’s flagship PBS station – WLIW21, THIRTEEN PBSKids, WLIW World and Create; NJ PBS, New Jersey’s statewide public television network; Long Island’s only NPR station WLIW-FM; ALL ARTS, the arts and culture media provider; and newsroom NJ Spotlight News. Through these channels and streaming platforms, The WNET Group brings arts, culture, education, news, documentary, entertainment and DIY programming to more than five million viewers each month. The WNET Group’s award-winning productions include signature PBS series Nature, Great Performances, American Masters, PBS NewsHour Weekend and Amanpour and Company and trusted local news programs MetroFocus and NJ Spotlight News with Briana Vannozzi. Inspiring curiosity and nurturing dreams, The WNET Group’s award-winning Kids’ Media and Education team produces the PBS KIDS series Cyberchase, interactive Mission US history games, and resources for families, teachers and caregivers. A leading nonprofit public media producer for nearly 60 years, The WNET Group presents and distributes content that fosters lifelong learning, including multiplatform initiatives addressing poverty, jobs, economic opportunity, social justice, understanding and the environment. Through Passport, station members can stream new and archival programming anytime, anywhere. The WNET Group represents the best in public media. Join us.
About Studio City / PXL (SCPXL.com) Based in New York and Los Angeles, two-time Emmy and Clio award-winning Studio City/PXL is the world’s only entity producing Entertainment, Media, and Digital Marketing content and technologies every day for every blue-chip media conglomerate in North America. Each year, Studio City produces over 13,000 spots for ABC/Disney, Amazon, Fox Sports, NBC/Universal, Sony Pictures Television, ViacomCBS, Warner Media, Debmar-Mercury, and Fremantle Entertainment. PXL creates and manages digital, social media, web and original technologies for entertainment giants D.C. Comics, Disney, DreamWorks, Netflix, Paramount, Universal and Warner Bros. After an aggressive 2020 expansion, the media agency now also services a multitude of non-entertainment sectors including Government (New York State, City of Santa Monica), Sports (The LA Kings), NonProfit (Peta, Colorectal Cancer Society), Education (Arizona State University), and consumer brands (Walmart, Casa Del Sol). Besides PBS, Studio City/PXL is in development on original series’ for Discovery+ and Lifetime, having recently celebrated the launch of the 11th Season of its Dish Nation series on FOX and completed production of Hoarders Season 10 for A&E. Learn more at http://www.SCPXL.com.
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