Julie Andrews, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Terrence McNally Set for Celebration of John F. Kennedy

By Andrew Gans
13 Oct 2010

Brain Stokes Mitchell
Brain Stokes Mitchell

The Kennedy Center has announced the performers and presenters who will take part in the opening concert of The Presidency of John F. Kennedy: A 50th Anniversary Celebration, which will be held Jan. 20, 2011, at 7 PM in the Kennedy Center Concert Hall.

Diane Sawyer and Mike Nichols will co-host the evening, which celebrates the legacy of the 35th President of the United States.

Performers and presenters will include Julie Andrews, Harolyn Blackwell, Herbie Hancock, Yo-Yo Ma, The Manzari Brothers, Terrence McNally, Lorne Michaels, Brian Stokes Mitchell and Paul Simon. American Ballet Theatre will also perform The Dying Swan.

Kennedy Center and National Symphony Orchestra music director Christoph Eschenbach will conduct the NSO in Peter Lieberson's world-premiere composition, "Remembering JFK: An American Elegy," which will be narrated by Morgan Freeman.

The Presidency of John F. Kennedy: A 50th Anniversary Celebration's opening concert, on the 50th anniversary of President Kennedy’s inauguration, will "commence a three-week-long series of performances and events that commemorate the President who led the United States into the modern era of global participation," according to the Kennedy Center.

Tickets for the opening concert go on sale to Kennedy Center Members on Oct. 15 and to the public Oct. 20. Tickets ranging from $49 to $150 will be available at the Kennedy Center Box Office or by calling Instant Charge at (202) 467-4600. For more information visit www.kennedy-center.org.