FOR COLORED GIRLS Anniversary Concert and More Set for Lincoln Center 2026 American Songbook Series

Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts will present the return of the American Songbook series with a new season curated by producer, creative director, and Lincoln Center Artist-in-Residence Clint Ramos. 

The series takes places across three halls on the Lincoln Center campus, from March 18 – May 23, 2026, with a wide range of artistic expressions including music, theater, dance, and more.

“We’re thrilled to collaborate with Artist-in-Residence Clint Ramos on curating the season,” said Shanta Thake, Ehrenkranz Chief Artistic Officer of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. “Clint has captured the spirit of curiosity and innovation the American Songbook series builds on year after year with an incredible roster of artists. Audiences can encounter new collaborations and interactive live performances that mark exciting firsts for Lincoln Center.”

Three days of performances of community-oriented artistic forms fill the David Rubenstein Atrium: karaoke, musical theater, and the dance party. Audiences can revel at the intersection of opera and house music with Diva Factory, featuring downtown dance legend DJ Lina Bradford, and internationally acclaimed countertenors Anthony Roth Costanzo and Kangmin Justin Kim hosting an unforgettable fusion of house music, opera, performance art, and all-night dancing (May 23). Lincoln Center hosts the karaoke competition, VERSUS: Asia Decides, pitting Broadway stars head-to-head in a musical battle directed by Teddy Bergman. Come root for Team Korea or Team Philippines to take home the karaoke crown (May 21). Composer Mark Bennett and acclaimed novelist and playwright Jessica Hagedorn join forces with director Emilio Ramos for a staged concert of Most Wanted, a piece looking at the dark side of fame and celebrity (May 22).

Core to the American Songbook series is an array of artists crafting new, powerhouse concerts. Platinum-certified, GRAMMY and Emmy-nominated singer-songwriter and composer Ingrid Michaelson makes her Lincoln Center return with The Time and Space Between Us, joined by a few surprise guests (April 3); GRAMMY Award-winning producer, composer, and choir master Donald Lawrence does a deep dive into the art of gospel, alongside an ensemble of singers and musicians (April 4); Singer-songwriter Sandra St. Victor and hit record producer and songwriter Mark Batson perform ELLA & THE DUKE, a theatrical concert deconstructing the creative legacy of Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington (March 18); Tony Award-winning Broadway star of The King and I, Here Lies Love, and The Light in the Piazza, Ruthie Ann Miles returns to Lincoln Center for her first-ever solo concert, Perfectly Imperfect (March 19); and breakout performer of Broadway’s hit musical Maybe Happy Ending, Dez Duron, makes his Lincoln Center debut with All My Tomorrows, a tribute to the American crooner (March 20).

This season also celebrates the 50th anniversary of the groundbreaking choreopoem for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf by Ntozake Shange with a concert conceived by composer Natalie Brown and director Ellenore Scott, choreographer of Lincoln Center Theater’s Ragtime. By weaving melody into Shange’s rhythm and language, Brown’s piece, entitled for colored girls, adds additional dimension to a deeply resonant work that captivated audiences in its original Broadway debut in 1976, running for over 700 performances. Shange’s extraordinary storytelling has endured, inspiring choreographers and playwrights for decades with its convention-defying union of poetry, dance, and sound. Today, the piece continues to capture the hearts and minds of audiences with regular amateur and professional stagings across the country. This presentation is co-curated by Clint Ramos and Lincoln Center’s Visionary Artist Jeanine Tesori (April 6).

The American Songbook series has celebrated the ever-expanding boundaries of the American music canon for more than twenty-five years. Over this time, the series has featured legendary musicians of today and tomorrow, shaping music across pop, folk, jazz, punk, musical theater, rap, Hip-Hop, and more. Past performers have included Deaf Broadway, Rosanne Cash, Desmond Child, Ariana DeBose, ESG, Rhiannon Giddens, Gossip, iLe, Talib Kweli, Taylor Mac, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Nico Muhly, Kelli O’Hara, Bernadette Peters, Rostam, Patti Smith, Sufjan Stevens, St. Vincent, Rufus Wainwright and many more.

All events in American Songbook: Echoes of an Inheritance are either Free or Choose-What-You-Pay.

Lincoln Center Presents

American Songbook: Echoes of an Inheritance

March 18 – May 23, 2026

Chronology of Events

Wednesday, March 18, 2026 at 8:00pm

The Appel Room, Jazz at Lincoln Center
ELLA & THE DUKE

Created by Sandra St. Victor & Mark Batson

In the storied history of American music, you’d be hard pressed to find a duo as influential, as lasting, and as awe-inspiringly talented as that of vocalist Ella Jane Fitzgerald and composer Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington—immortally known as Ella and The Duke. Lincoln Center’s American Songbook introduces a new narrated concert honoring Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington’s shared legacy, as portrayed by the lead singer of The Family Stand and accomplished soloist Sandra St. Victor alongside multiple GRAMMY Award-winning producer and pianist Mark Batson. Fitzgerald and Ellington’s paths to greatness could not have been more different, yet a reciprocal respect for one another’s artistry birthed a creative friendship that set the standard for the American Songbook. St. Victor and Batson present the music and lives of these legendary artists with candor and wit, finding parallels between their own personal experiences and those of their inspirations. You'll bear witness to the icons' journeys from Fitzgerald's first appearance at The Apollo and Ellington's teenage work as a sign painter, to the megastardom that awaited them. St. Victor and Batson’s combined decades of storytelling and music-making experience spark a perfect storm of talent, making this one-of-a-kind theater experience one that you won't want to miss!

Thursday, March 19, 2026 at 8:00pm

The Appel Room, Jazz at Lincoln Center
Ruthie Ann Miles: Perfectly Imperfect

One of Broadway's brightest stars shines on a stage of her own when Tony Award–winning musical actress Ruthie Ann Miles headlines her very first solo concert. Renowned for her remarkable vocal and emotional range, the Hawai'i native and New York resident has established a passionate fan base following show-stopping turns in The King And I and McNeal at Lincoln Center Theater; The Light in the Piazza;  Here Lies Love; Sunday in the Park With George; and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Miles has also brought her talent to bear for major television parts (“The Americans,” “All Rise”) and memorable voice acting (Over the Moon, The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane). Now, drawing from the lessons and challenges of her personal history and professional journey, Miles delights American Songbook audiences with a deeply intimate evening of story and song, giving voice to the multi-faceted roles within her: artist, daughter, wife, and mother. Ruthie Ann Miles' singular soprano voice lights up The Appel Room at this unforgettable, one-night-only performance.

Friday, March 20, 2026 at 8:00pm

The Appel Room, Jazz at Lincoln Center
Dez Duron: All My Tomorrows

Maybe Happy Ending was the biggest hit of last year's Broadway musical season, winning six Tony Awards and paving the way for a breakout performance from first-time Broadway performer, Dez Duron. This spring, the in-demand leading man shares his love for the magic of a ballad with a one-night-only performance as part of American Songbook. Through a mix of beloved standards and unexpected selections, Duron's debut Lincoln Center concert, directed by Teddy Bergman (KPOP on Broadway), dissects the legacy of the American crooner. From Bennett to Martin, Sinatra to Tormé, the sound of the canonical balladeer signals romance, masculinity, and longing. What does it mean to be a crooner today? With his signature charisma and silky vocal style on full display, Duron offers a love letter and exploration of this classic American musical form, reframing it for the Modern Stage.

Friday, April 3, 2026 at 7:30pm

Wu Tsai Theater, David Geffen Hall
Ingrid Michaelson & Friends: The Time and Space Between Us

Platinum-certified, GRAMMY and Emmy-nominated pop singer-songwriter Ingrid Michaelson's twenty-year recording career has yielded nine albums, multiple television soundtracks, and a hit Broadway musical. Michaelson's most recent work, including her 2024 LP For the Dreamers, embraces an introspective mode, a direction that she'll bring to full fruition for her headlining American Songbook concert at David Geffen Hall. Known for her delicate storytelling and hypnotic melodies, Michaelson—accompanied by a surprise selection of luminary friends from the pop and theater world—turns her lyrical gaze inward in a new concert that explores the ties that bind us across time and space. Drawing sweet insights and wisdom from her personal life, The Time and Space Between Us carries the echoes of relationships past and present, exploring how time shapes identity, and how familial and love stories live on in all of us.

Saturday, April 4, 2026 at 7:30pm

Wu Tsai Theater, David Geffen Hall
REVIVAL: The Gospel According to Donald Lawrence

GRAMMY Award-winning producer, composer, and choir master Donald Lawrence has been one of the most prominent and celebrated voices in contemporary gospel music for over 30 years. Alongside his choir, the Tri-City Singers, Lawrence's talent has been instrumental in the work of The Clark Sisters, Mary J. Blige, Kirk Franklin, and Hezekiah Walker, among many others. For this very special one-night-only REVIVAL at David Geffen Hall, Lawrence celebrates great gospel composers in an expansive meditation on the traditions and artistry of gospel music: its roots, its resilience, and its power to move the human spirit. In times of upheaval and trouble, what does gospel have to offer the modern listener? Lawrence’s answer is both deeply personal and universally resonant, reminding us of the art form’s enduring capacity to inspire and uplift. Through song, reflection, and reinvention, Lawrence—alongside his ensemble of singers and band—invites us to witness how gospel music gives wings to collective struggle, joy, and heritage. Join us for an evening that traces gospel’s historical and musical lineage while opening space for audiences to experience the high artform that it is.

Produced in collaboration with Spoke Creative Studios

Monday, April 6, 2026 at 8:00pm

The Appel Room, Jazz at Lincoln Center
for colored girls

Ntozake Shange’s enduring, epochal choreopoem for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf celebrates its 50th anniversary with a reimagined musical treatment. In collaboration with Lincoln Center Visionary Artist Jeanine Tesori, composer Natalie Brown brings new dimensions to for colored girls, setting its text to song and extending the legacy of this canonical work. By weaving melody into Shange’s rhythm and language, Brown opens new points of access to its lasting themes of resilience, identity, and womanhood. Directed by Ellenore Scott, choreographer of the recent Broadway run of Lincoln Center Theater's revival of Ragtime, this presentation honors the original work's groundbreaking impact while boldly reframing it for a contemporary audience. Together, Brown and Scott illuminate for colored girls' brilliance and breathe new life into the poetry, musicality, and movement essential to the original production. This project asks what it means to carry forward an American cultural legacy; and how music can deepen the resonance of words that have already changed the world.

Thursday, May 21, 2026 at 7:30pm

David Rubenstein Atrium
VERSUS: Karaoke
Asia Decides: Korea vs. Philippines

For the first time ever, Lincoln Center hosts a spectacular karaoke competition, passing the mic to Korean and Filipino Broadway superstars representing Team Korea and Team Philippines—two cultures that have passionately embraced and defined the art form. Karaoke has emerged in the past half century as a ritual of connection, a vehicle for personal storytelling, and a grand equalizer that makes music accessible to everyone. Pull up a chair and get ready to witness Asian-American musical excellence! Cheer and applaud as your favorite Broadway idols belt their hearts out in musical battles and unforgettable duets, with direction by Teddy Bergman (KPOP on Broadway). At the end of the night, a panel of star judges will determine the singular team to be crowned the VERSUS champions! Full lineup to be announced shortly.

Friday, May 22, 2026 at 7:30pm

David Rubenstein Atrium
Most Wanted

In the back room of a pulsing Miami club, lies are exposed and an assassin’s life is laid bare. Award-winning composer Mark Bennett and celebrated writer Jessica Hagedorn join forces with director Emilio Ramos for a staged concert of Most Wanted, a piece that interrogates our dangerous obsession with fame and celebrity. Set in the aftermath of a notorious assassination and manhunt in 1997, Most Wanted is loosely inspired by the life and crimes of Andrew Cunanan—a kaleidoscopic journey through high fashion, glossy magazines, low dives, and the end of the line for a lost young man.

Saturday, May 23, 2026 at 7:30pm

David Rubenstein Atrium
Diva Factory

Featuring DJ Lina, Anthony Roth Constanzo, and Kangmin Justin Kim