James S. Marcus News

Featuring new, original interviews with Mary Karr, Hilton Als, Alice Walker, Tobias Wolff, Tommy Lee Jones, Alice McDermott and others.

American Masters: Laura Ingalls Wilder presents an unvarnished look at the unlikely author whose autobiographical fiction helped shape American ideas of the frontier and self-reliance.

Stick Figure Entertainment, in association with American Masters Pictures, is proud to announce Twyla Moves (w.t.), a feature documentary

Today at the Virtual PBS Press Tour, PBS and THIRTEEN announced American Masters: How It Feels To Be Free

American Masters joins PBS' summer-long celebration of female trailblazers in honor of the women's vote centennial with three new documentaries exploring the lives of remarkable changemakers, both past and present.

Today, THIRTEEN's American Masters series and Philip Gittelman Productions, in association with Black Public Media, announced a new documentary on contralto Marian Anderson (1897-1993) in production for PBS.

Beginning this Women's History Month, American Masters illuminates the inspiring stories of little-known American heroines from the early years of feminism and the women who now follow in their footsteps with Unladylike2020, an innovative multimedia series launching in honor of the 100th anniversary of women's suffrage. Narrated by Julianna Margulies (The Good Wife; ER; Billions) and Lorraine Toussaint (Selma; Orange is the New Black; The Glorias),  American Masters – Unladylike2020 spotlights 26 diverse changemakers, in 26 documentary shorts premiering Wednesdays, beginning March 4 through August 26, Women's Equality Day, on the American Masters YouTube channel. In addition, an hour-long American Masters – Unladylike2020 special will premiere as part of PBS' summer-long celebration of female trailblazers.

Soprano Jessica Niles and baritone Gregory Feldmann are the winners of the Juilliard Vocal Arts Honors Recital for 2019-20 and will appear in a free joint recital on Thursday, March 19, 2020, at 7:30pm in Alice Tully Hall. Collaborative pianists Bronwyn Schuman and Grace Francis will perform with the singers.

American soprano Renée Fleming, one of the most beloved and celebrated singers of our time, is donating her personal archives to Juilliard, her alma mater. The announcement was made by Juilliard President Damian Woetzel at the beginning of Fleming's Vocal Arts master class, held on February 19 in Juilliard's Paul Hall. The master class featured singers from Juilliard's Marcus Institute for Vocal Arts and was part of her February residency at the school.

American Masters presents the broadcast premiere of award-winning filmmaker Stanley Nelson's deep dive into the world of a beloved musical giant. American Masters a?" Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool, which earned a Grammy nomination in the a?oeBest Music Filma?? category, premieres nationwide Tuesday, February 25 at 9 p.m. on PBS (check local listings), pbs.org/milesdavis and the PBS Video app in honor of Black History Month.

On December 12, NYC-ARTS will feature a look at the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art dedicated to providing a platform for artistic exploration through multi-faceted LGBTQ perspectives located in SoHo.

THE NEW YORKER NEW YORK FESTIVAL OF SONG presents a new show that sheds light on Harlem's gay underground: Tain't Nobody's Business If I Do: Songs from Gay Harlem

Juilliard's Ellen and James S. Marcus Institute for Vocal Arts presents Mozart's Così fan tutte, conducted by alumnus Nimrod David Pfeffer and directed by faculty member David Paul, on Wednesday, November 13 and Friday, November 15, 2019, at 7:30pm, and Sunday, November 17, 2019, at 2pm in Juilliard's Peter Jay Sharp Theater.

Steven Blier, Artistic Director a?? Michael Barrett, Associate Artistic Director   presents Marc Blitzstein's No For An Answer and Kurt Weill's Der Silbersee (Silverlake). Two powerful, neglected works by two masters of political theater. Each speaks passionately to the issues of our times. 

One of the most influential artists of the 20th century, Mark Rothko's signature style helped define Abstract Expressionism, the movement that shifted the center of the art world from Paris to New York. American Masters — Rothko: Pictures Must Be Miraculous, premiering nationwide Friday, October 25 at 9 p.m. on PBS (check local listings), pbs.org/americanmasters and the PBS Video app, is an intimate portrait of the celebrated painter whose luminous canvasses now set records at international auctions. Interviews with Rothko's children, Kate and Christopher, as well as leading curators, art historians and conservators present a comprehensive look at the artist's life and career, complemented by original scenes with Alfred Molina in the role of Rothko. Molina performs segments from Rothko's diaries, and the documentary features clips from the six-time Tony-winning play Red. Great Performances will premiere Red nationwide on Friday, November 15 at 9 p.m. on PBS (check local listings), pbs.org/gperf and the PBS Video app as part of the series' third annual “Broadway's Best” lineup of acclaimed theatrical productions.

THIRTEEN's American Masters and Latino Public Broadcasting's VOCES join forces to present the first documentary about Raúl Juliá, the versatile Puerto Rican actor whose work on stage and screen took the world by storm. American Masters a?" Raúl Juliá: The World's a Stage premieres Friday, September 13, 2019 at 9 p.m. ET on PBS (check local listings), pbs.org/rauljulia and the PBS Video App in honor of National Hispanic Heritage Month. 

 Today at the Television Critics Association Press Tour, PBS and THIRTEEN announced a new documentary about the EGOT-winning entertainer Rita Moreno, slated to premiere in 2020. AMERICAN MASTERS a?oeRita Moreno: The Girl Who Decided to Go For Ita?? (w.t.) is a partnership between THIRTEEN's AMERICAN MASTERS series and Norman Lear's Act III Productions in association with Maramara and executive producer Lin-Manuel Miranda.

Juilliard's Ellen and James S. Marcus Institute for Vocal Arts, under the leadership of artistic director Brian Zeger, announces its 2019-20 season of opera and vocal arts performances. Highlights of the upcoming season include three mainstage operas: Mozart's Così fan tutte, conducted by alumnus Nimrod David Pfeffer and directed by faculty member David Paul, on November 13, 15, and 17, 2019, in Juilliard's Peter Jay Sharp Theater; Virgil Thomson's The Mother of Us All, in collaboration with the Metropolitan Museum of Art's MetLiveArts and the New York Philharmonic with Juilliard singers, conducted by Daniela Candillari and directed by Louisa Proske, on February 8, 11, 12, and 14, 2020, in the Charles Engelhard Court at the Metropolitan Museum of Art; and Puccini's La bohème, conducted by Keri-Lynn Wilson and directed by Stephen Wadsworth, on April 22, 24, and 26, 2020, in Juilliard's Peter Jay Sharp Theater.

Best known for her science fiction and “Earthsea” fantasy series, celebrated and beloved author Ursula Kroeber Le Guin (1929–2018) wrote 21 novels, 11 volumes of short stories, four collections of essays, 12 children's books, six volumes of poetry and four of translation during her life. American Masters presents the first documentary film exploring the remarkable life and legacy of the prolific and versatile author: Worlds of Ursula K. Le Guin, premiering nationwide Friday, August 2 at 9 p.m. on PBS (check local listings), pbs.orgamericanmasters and the PBS Video app.

Juilliard's Ellen and James S. Marcus Institute for Vocal Arts, under the leadership of artistic director Brian Zeger, concludes its opera season with Mozart's Don Giovanni, conducted by Joseph Colaneri and directed by Emma Griffin, on April 24, 26, and 28, 2019.