Joining the all-star line-up for the 38th annual edition of PBS‘ A CAPITOL FOURTH, the country’s longest-running live national July 4 TV tradition, are multi-platinum pop singer and songwriter Andy Grammer, theatrical icon and one of Broadway’s greatest triple-threat talents Chita Rivera and THE VOICE Season 14 finalist Kyla Jade. Andy Grammer will perform his hit “Back Home,” the lead single from his Gold-certified album Magazines or Novels, on America’s national Independence Day celebration. Gospel singer Kyla Jade will open the show with a performance of the “National Anthem.”
Chita Rivera, a versatile actress/singer/dancer and the recipient of the 2018 Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre, will introduce a special tribute to the work of famed American composer Leonard Bernstein, the iconic voice of his age, on the 100th anniversary of his birthday (he was born August 25, 1918). The segment will feature Bernstein’s beloved composition “Tonight” from WEST SIDE STORY performed by internationally acclaimed Grammy Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell with the National Symphony Orchestra under the direction of top pops conductor Jack Everly. Rivera, who has been nominated for a record-breaking 10 Tony Awards, and won twice, originated the role of ‘Anita’ in the original Broadway premiere of WEST SIDE STORY in 1957 bringing her stardom.
The 38th annual broadcast of A CAPITOL FOURTH, celebrating our country’s 242nd birthday, airs live from the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol on PBS July 4, 2018, from 8:00 to 9:30 p.m. ET before a concert audience of hundreds of thousands, millions more at home as well as to our troops serving around the world on the American Forces Network. The program can also be heard live in stereo over NPR member stations nationwide. The concert will also be live-streamed on PBS, You Tube, Facebook and www.pbs.org/a-capitol-fourth and available as Video on Demand for a limited time only, July 4 to July 18, 2018.
Emmy Award-nominated actor and producer John Stamos (FULLER HOUSE, SCREAM QUEENS) hosts the festivities, which will feature all-star musical performances by: multi-platinum selling music legend Jimmy Buffett with the Broadway cast of the new musical ESCAPE TO MARGARITAVILLE, making their first stop after Broadway at the U.S. Capitol before launching a national tour; “America’s Band,” the iconic multi-platinum selling music legends The Beach Boys; three-time Grammy Award-winning and multi-platinum selling artist Pentatonix; legendary Motown stars The Temptations; acclaimed multi-platinum country music singer-songwriter and winner of the iHeartRadio Music Award for Best New Country Artist Luke Combs; country music star and AMERICAN IDOL alum Lauren Alaina; 12-time Grammy Award-winner and gospel legend CeCe Winans; and world-renowned four-time Grammy Award-winning soprano superstar Renée Fleming, who will be performing her show-stopping anthem from the current hit Broadway production of CAROUSEL.
The program is a co-production of Michael Colbert of Capital Concerts and WETA, Washington, D.C. Executive producer Michael Colbert has assembled an award-winning production team that features the top Hollywood talent behind some of television’s most prestigious entertainment shows including the GRAMMY AWARDS, COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS, TONY AWARDS, SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE and more.