Great Performances Season 49 Episodes

Episode 1

Yannick - An Artist's Journey

Fri, Sep 3, 2021

This documentary film tells the story of French Canadian-born conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin's rise from a child prodigy to one of the most acclaimed and sought-after music directors of his generation. In 2018, the young pianist and conductor stepped into one of the most high-profile roles in all of music: Music Director of the Metropolitan Opera. Great Performances' 'Yannick - An Artist's Journey' follows Nézet-Séguin on his journey from a 10-year-old budding conductor to the pinnacle of the opera world, capturing the creative process and what it means to refine the soul of an artist.

Episode 2

Verdi's Requiem: The Met Remembers 9/11

Sat, Sep 11, 2021

Episode 3

The Red Shoes

Fri, Sep 17, 2021

Matthew Bourne's the Red Shoes: This ballet is a tale of obsession, possession and one girl's dream to be the greatest dancer in the world. Victoria Page lives to dance but her ambitions become a battleground between the two men who inspire her passion.

Episode 4

Now Hear This: Beethoven's Ghost

Fri, Oct 29, 2021

Violinist Scott Yoo and fellow musicians undertake a recording of Beethoven's most personal music at a historic manor in the Berkshires.

Episode 5

A John Williams Premiere at Tanglewood

Fri, Nov 12, 2021

Experience a concert of works by legendary composer John Williams from Boston Symphony Orchestra's summer home at Tanglewood including Williams' new violin concerto performed by virtuoso Anne-Sophie Mutter, as well as performances of Aaron Copland's "Quiet City," Igor Stravinsky's Suite from "The Firebird" and "Starburst" by Jessie Montgomery, composer-violinist-educator and Chicago Symphony Orchestra's newest composer-in-residence.

Episode 6

San Francisco Symphony Reopening Night

Fri, Nov 19, 2021

The opening night of the San Francisco Symphony's 110th season features music by John Adams, Esperanza Spalding and Wayne Shorter and performances by Alonzo King LINES Ballet.

Episode 7

Coppelia!

Fri, Nov 26, 2021

When everyone in town falls under the spell of charismatic cosmetic surgeon Doctor Coppelius, feisty Swan must save her sweetheart Franz before his heart is used to spark life into Coppelia, the robot-woman the Doctor has created. A full cast and crew listing can be seen here: Coppelia (2021)

Episode 8

From Vienna: The New Year's Celebration 2022

Sat, Jan 1, 2022

Great Performances continues its tradition of ringing in the New Year with the Vienna Philharmonic at the world-famous Musikverein. Under the baton of Grammy-winning guest conductor Daniel Barenboim, the Vienna Philharmonic performs a selection of favorite Strauss family waltzes. The concert also features dances from the Vienna State Ballet performing on location at Schonbrunn Palace and its park grounds, as well as a performance by the world-famous Lipizzaner horses from The Spanish Riding School.

Episode 9

Reopening: The Broadway Revival

Tue, Jan 18, 2022

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. 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, 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.

Episode 10

Movies for Grownups Awards With AARP the Magazine

Fri, Mar 18, 2022

The AARP Movies for Grownups Awards are awards given out to "champion films made by and for grownups." Given annually by The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) the awards began in 2002 with the goal of encouraging Hollywood to make more movies by and about people over the age of 50.

Episode 11

The Conductor

Fri, Mar 25, 2022

Great Performances: The Conductor tells the story of the first female conductor of a major symphony, Marin Alsop. Documenting Alsop's journey from playing the violin as an ambitious nine-year-old who longed to conduct, to attending Juilliard, to creating her own all-female string orchestra and swing band, to ultimately becoming music director of Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. Despite repeated rejection from the classical music establishment that thought only males could be conductors, Alsop persevered and blazed her own trail which gained her attention as a conductor and opened new opportunities for her that led to studying with legendary composer Leonard Bernstein.

Episode 12

Now Hear This: Amy Beach Rise to Prominence

Fri, Apr 8, 2022

The life and work of American Romantic composer Amy Beach.

Episode 13

Early Days

Fri, Apr 18, 198667 mins

Episode 14

Rubinstein

Fri, Apr 22, 2022

Episode 15

Sarah

Zoe Caldwell portrays legendary actress Sarah Bernhardt (1844-1923), who, at age 68, reminisces about her tumultuous career with the Comedie Francaise; her tours of Russia and North America; her skirmishes with the press; and her disastrous marriage to the morphine-addicted diplomat Jacques Damala.

Episode 24

Now Hear This: Aaron Copland/ Dean of American Music

Fri, Apr 22, 2022

Episode 25

Now Hear This: New American Voices

Fri, Apr 29, 2022

Episode 27

Anything Goes

Fri, May 13, 2022159 mins

Filmed live at the Barbican in London, this major new 5-star production of the classic musical comedy features an all-star cast. When the S.S. American heads out to sea, etiquette and convention head out the portholes as two unlikely pairs set off on the course to true love - proving that sometimes destiny needs a little help from a crew of singing sailors, a comical disguise and some good old-fashioned blackmail. This hilarious musical romp across the Atlantic, directed by the multi-award-winning Broadway director and choreographer Kathleen Marshall, features Cole Porter's joyful score, including "I Get A Kick Out of You", "You're the Top" and the show stopping "Anything Goes".

Episode 28

Merry Wives

Fri, May 20, 2022

An Afrocentric interpretation of William Shakespeare's "The Merry Wives of Windsor" that takes place among the West African community of Harlem in New York City.

Episode 29

Keeping Company With Sondheim

Fri, May 27, 202266 mins

Filmed over two years, this new documentary takes an exclusive inside look at Tony-winning director Marianne Elliott's creative process of bringing a reimagined gender-swapped production of Stephen Sondheim and George Furth's musical "Company" to Broadway during the COVID-19 pandemic. Featuring rehearsal and performance footage, plus new interviews with Elliott, Sondheim, Katrina Lenk, Patti LuPone and members of the original 1970 cast, the broadcast tells the story of the show's Broadway debut in a city on the verge of bankruptcy to its reimagination 50 years later as both Broadway and New York City emerge from one of the greatest crises in contemporary history.

Episode 33

Vienna Philharmonic Summer Night Concert 2022

Fri, Aug 26, 2022

Conducted for the first time by Grammy Award-winning Boston Symphony Orchestra music director Andris Nelsons, the Vienna Philharmonic's annual summer night concert returns to the Schönbrunn Palace Gardens. Featuring French cellist Gautier Capuçon as a soloist performing Camille Saint-Säens' Concerto for Cello No. 1, the orchestra also performs a selection of works from classical composers such as Ludwig van Beethoven, Johann Strauss, Mykola Lysenko and more.