Renée Fleming, who was Tony-nominated earlier this year for her performance as Nettie Fowler in the Broadway revival of Carousel, performed the musical’s anthem, “You'll Never Walk Alone,” on PBS’ July 4 broadcast of A Capitol Fourth. Watch the clip in the full broadcast (around the 33-minute mark) above.
John Stamos hosted the evening, which also featured an appearance from Tony-winning triple threat Chita Rivera. The 2018 Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre recipient introduced a tribute to the work of late composer Leonard Bernstein on the 100th anniversary of his birthday (he was born August 25, 1918). The segment featured selections from Bernstein West Side Story performed by Grammy-winning violinist Joshua Bell with the National Symphony Orchestra.
Broadcast live from the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol, the Independence Day celebration also featured Jimmy Buffett with the cast of Broadway's recent Escape to Margaritaville, The Beach Boys, three-time Grammy winners Pentatonix, Motown stars The Temptations, country music singer-songwriter Luke Combs, country music star and American Idol alum Lauren Alaina, 12-time Grammy-winning gospel legend CeCe Winans, multi-platinum pop singer and songwriter Andy Grammer, The Voice Season 14 finalist Kyla Jade, and gospel singer Jade, who opened the show with “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
The National Symphony Orchestra was conducted by Jack Everly.
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The evening also included a tribute to The Beach Boys, honored for their musical career as the fifth-ever recipients of A Capitol Fourth’s National Artistic Achievement Award. Past honorees include Gloria Estefan, Stevie Wonder, Reba McEntire, and John Williams. Stamos, a longtime Beach Boys friend and frequent collaborator, presented the award to the group.
Rivera has been a special guest performer on Playbill's Broadway on the High Seas cruises. Cabins are now on sale for Playbill’s Broadway on the Rhône River 2 cruise April 7–14, 2019, featuring Melissa Errico, Rebecca Luker, Marc Kudisch, and Seth Rudetsky. Call Playbill Travel for tickets at 866-455-6789 or visit PlaybillTravel.com.
