—World-renowned soprano Renée Fleming hosts an all-star evening from Lyric Opera of Chicago—
A star-studded array of vocal talent with deep ties to Chicago gathers on stage at Lyric Opera to pay tribute to the city’s wide-reaching influence across blues, jazz, rock, folk, hip-hop, gospel, opera and classical music in GREAT PERFORMANCES “Chicago Voices,” premiering nationwide Friday, August 10 on PBS.
Hosted by four-time Grammy-winning soprano Renée Fleming, the multi-genre concert special features performances by Fleming, Tony-winner Jessie Mueller ("Waitress," "Beautiful: The Carole King Musical"), Grammy-winning rapper Lupe Fiasco, three-time Grammy-winning folk legend John Prine, Grammy-winning pop and gospel singer Michelle Williams (Destiny’s Child), Grammy-winning jazz singer Kurt Elling and many more in a celebration of Chicago’s rich and diverse vocal music legacy.
Led by award-winning music director Doug Peck, the concert features additional performances and unique collaborations by Beverly Sills Award-winning tenor Matthew Polenzani, blues singer Shemekia Copeland, alternative country duo The Handsome Family, Voices of Trinity Mass Choir, Terrence Howard (EMPIRE, "Hustle & Flow") and Jussie Smollett (EMPIRE). Civil rights activist and founder of Operation PUSH Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr., serves as special guest presenter during the concert.
Songs featured include:
- “The Battle is Over (But the War Goes On)” – Shemekia Copeland
- “Summertime” – Renée Fleming
- “On Broadway/ So Far Away” – Jessie Mueller and Kurt Elling
- “Wang-Dang Doodle” – Shemekia Copeland and Michelle Williams
- “Be My Love” – Matthew Polenzani
- “Far From Any Road” – The Handsome Family
- “Kick, Push” – Lupe Fiasco
- “She Used To Be Mine” – Jessie Mueller
- “The Jet Set” – Renée Fleming and John Prine
- “A Change is Gonna Come” – Terrence Howard and Jussie Smollett
- “Coming Together” – Cast
- “Sweet Home Chicago” – Cast
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CREDITS:
GREAT PERFORMANCES is produced by THIRTEEN Productions LLC for WNET, one of America’s most prolific and respected public media providers. A production of HMS Media for Lyric Opera of Chicago, “Chicago Voices” was directed for television by Matt Hoffman and produced by Scott Silberstein. For GREAT PERFORMANCES, Bill O’Donnell is series producer and David Horn is executive producer.
