NY Phil to Present US Premiere of Documentary Film EL CANTO DE LAS MANOS

The New York Philharmonic — in partnership with Rolex and in collaboration with Lincoln Center, The Juilliard School, and DOC NYC — will present the US Premiere screening of the documentary film El Canto de las Manos, on Friday, November 7, 2025, at 7:30 p.m.

El Canto de las Manos centers on the 2022 production of Beethoven’s opera Fidelio, conducted by Gustavo Dudamel — now the NY Phil’s Tang Music & Artistic Director Designate, and husband of Valverde — and featuring Coro de Manos Blancas — an ensemble comprising Deaf and hard of hearing performers, as well as performers with visual and cognitive impairments, from Venezuela — and artists from Deaf West Theatre.

Before the screening, Dudamel will lead the Juilliard Orchestra, students from Juilliard’s Ellen and James S. Marcus Institute for Vocal Arts, and Deaf artists engaged through Deaf West Theatre in Mir ist so wunderbar, from Fidelio. Following the screening, Bradley Cooper — actor, filmmaker, and New York Philharmonic Board Member — will moderate a discussion with Dudamel, Valverde, DJ Kurs, artistic director of Deaf West Theatre, and Melissa S. Draganac-Hawk, head of Pennsylvania School for the Deaf.

Director María Valverde said: “Music is not only the inspiration and driving force in the lives of these brilliant Deaf artists, but also their refuge and salvation. This is a story of justice — of how art transcends the visible and transforms its protagonists into guides who illuminate a new way of experiencing music, one that comes from a deeper level of awareness; a declaration of freedom and dignity.”