Celebrating JFK In My Little Town Of D.C.

“The Presidency of John F. Kennedy: A 50th Anniversary Celebration Opening Concert” takes place Jan. 20 at Washington D.C.’s Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, which serves as both the national center for the performing arts and the country’s living memorial to Kennedy. The show is being held at the Kennedy Center Concert Hall at 7 p.m.

Diane Sawyer will host the event along with director Mike Nichols. Performers and presenters also include Julie Andrews, The Manzari Brothers, Harolyn Blackwell.
Terrence McNally, Lorne Michaels, and Brian Stokes Mitchell. The American Ballet will perform “The Dying Swan.”

Ticketholders will also enjoy the world premier of a new composition, “Remembering JFK: An American Elegy,” by Peter Lieberson. The piece will feature the National Symphony Orchestra conducted by NSO Music Director Christoph Eschenbach. Morgan Freeman will provide narration with texts from President Kennedy’s speeches and writings.

The concert will be followed by three weeks of performances and events at the center as part of a program marking the 50th anniversary of Kennedy’s inauguration to the presidency. 

The series will feature three concerts by the National Symphony Orchestra (including “Remembering JFK: An American Elegy” and Leonard Bernstein’s “Fanfare for the Inauguration of John F. Kennedy”), recreations of the “Concerts for Young People by Young People” and a new theatre work.

The American Ballet Theater will perform works favored by former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy as part of three evening-length performances of mixed repertory. Yo-Yo Ma and Denyce Graves will put on tributes to historic performances given at the White House by Pablo Casals and Grace Bumbry.

Tickets for the Jan. 20 concert go on sale to Kennedy Center Members on Friday and to the public Oct. 20.

For more information, click here for the Kennedy Center’s website.