PRESS RELEASE:

In a year chock full of star-studded 80th birthday tributes, legendary Broadway composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim's special gala with the New York Philharmonic stood out. The elaborate two-hour program now comes to KUED with Great Performances: Sondheim! The Birthday Concert airing Wednesday November 24 at 8:00 p.m.

"'Sondheim: The Birthday Concert' ... was a model of organization, with a suave host ... and witty leitmotifs woven into its structure. Performances by an all-star guest list ...proceeded at a brisk pace; there was no speechifying," raved New York Times reporter Stephen Holden.

Conducted by longtime Sondheim stalwart Paul Gemignani and hosted by David Hyde Pierce, the program includes a veritable cast of Broadway's finest performers including: Joanna Gleason, Patti LuPone, Audra McDonald, Mandy Patinkin, Bernadette Peters and many others.

The concert includes songs and orchestral pieces from Sondheim musical theater favorites such as Company, Follies, A Little Night Music, Sweeney Todd, Merrily We Roll Along, Into the Woods, and Sunday in the Park with George. Sondheim's lesser known career as a film score composer is acknowledged by a pas de deux danced to the theme written for Warren Beatty's Reds.

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