BWW's Guide to 4th of July TV Celebrations - Laura Osnes, Leslie Odom Jr., Heather Headley & More!
By: Caryn Robbins Jul. 03, 2017
With the celebration of America's birthday just around the corner, BWW brings you a guide to this year's Fourth of July television specials, featuring performances by BANDSTAND's Laura Osnes, Tony Award winner Leslie Odom, Jr, and the World Premiere of new music from award-winning composer Alan Menken! As always, we will be bringing you video of the appearances as soon as they become available. Check out what's in store for the 4th below!
MACY'S 4TH OF JULY FIREWORKS SPECTACULAR: NBC's annual MACY'S 4TH OF JULY FIREWORKS SPECTACULAR celebrates Independence Day in style with Grammy and Tony-Award winner Heather Headley performing a new arrangement of the Elvis Presley hit "If I Can Dream". Headley most recently appeared on Broadway in THE COLOR PURPLE. She received a Tony Award for her performance in 2000's AIDA. Other Broadway credits include THE LION KING and 2013's special concert presentation of Il Divo - A MUSICAL AFFAIR.
The special will also feature performances by Award-winning artists Jennifer Lopez, Sheryl Crow, Charlie Puth, Lady Antebellum, Brad Paisley, and Hailee Steinfeld. Akbar Gbajabiamila, Matt Iseman and Kristine Leahy from NBC's Emmy-nominated "American Ninja Warrior" join as hosts of the broadcast airing Tuesday, July 4 (8-10 p.m. ET/PT) with an hour-long encore presentation at 10 p.m.
A CAPITOL FOURTH: Emmy Award-nominated actor and producer John Stamos (FULLER HOUSE, SCREAM QUEENS) is set to host the 37th annual edition of PBS' A CAPITOL FOURTH, broadcast live from the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol. The all-star musical and fireworks extravaganza will kick off the country's 241st birthday with performances by acclaimed country music singer and songwriter Kellie Pickler, Grammy-nominated gospel legend Yolanda Adams and Broadway star and two-time Tony Award nominee Laura Osnes (BANDSTAND). Pickler, the AMERICAN IDOL alum, DANCING WITH THE STARS champion, and star of the hit TV show I LOVE KELLIE PICKLER will perform "This Land is Your Land" and "Small Town Girl" from her Gold-certified debut album. Adams, one of gospel's seminal voices, will perform "Battle Hymn of the Republic" with Patrick Lundy & The Ministers of Music. Osnes will be featured in a patriotic medley and will also perform alongside the U.S. Army Band "Pershing's Own" and members of the Armed Forces carrying the State and Territorial Flags during the fireworks finale.
Also performing will be soul men Dan Aykroyd and Jim Belushi of The Blues Brothers; iconic multi-platinum selling music legends The Beach Boys, with special guests John Stamos (drums) and Sugar Ray's Mark McGrath (vocals); legendary Motown stars The Four Tops; country music star and Grammy-nominated member of the Grand Ole Opry Trace Adkins; THE VOICE Season 12 winner Chris Blue; and multi-talented actress and singer Sofia Carson (DESCENDENTS 2); with the National Symphony Orchestra under the direction of top pops conductor Jack Everly.
A CAPITOL FOURTH airs on PBS Tuesday, July 4, 2017 from 8:00 to 9:30 p.m. ET before a concert audience of hundreds of thousands, millions more at home, as well as to our troops serving around the world on the American Forces Network. The program can also be heard live in stereo over NPR member stations nationwide. In addition, the concert will be live-streamed online on Facebook Live and http://www.pbs.org/a-capitol-fourth and available as Video on Demand for a limited time only, July 4 to July 18, 2017
BOSTON POPS FIREWORKS SPECTACULAR: The Boston Pops, under the direction of Keith Lockhart, will present the annual BOSTON POPS FIREWORKS SPECTACULAR, to be broadcast this year on Bloomberg TV. (see details below!) Tony Award winner Leslie Odom, Jr. (HAMILTON) will perform along with Andy Grammer and Melissa Etheridge. In addition, Alan Menken, the iconic American musical theater and film score composer best known for his scores for films by the Walt Disney Animation Studios, and Tony Award-winning lyricist Jack Feldman are composing a new work, "The Sum of Us," for soloist, chorus, and orchestra, to receive its world premiere at Boston's famed Independence Day celebration. Alix Steel, co-anchor of "Bloomberg Daybreak Americas" on Bloomberg Television and Carol Massar, co-anchor of "Bloomberg Markets" on Bloomberg Radio, will co-host the 2017 Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular, with additional reporting by Matt Miller, co-anchor "Bloomberg Markets: European Open" on Bloomberg Television.
The traditional fighter jet Military Flyover in coordination with the "Star Spangled Banner," will open the evening's Boston Pops program, and a spectacular 20-minute fireworks show designed by Grucci Fireworks, and accompanied by the music of the Boston Pops and other popular music of the past and present, will bring the celebration to an end. This year's Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular will also showcase the U.S. Army Field Band and Soldiers' Chorus, along with the Middlesex County Volunteers Fifes and Drums, adding their own special patriotic flair to the day's festivities. The program will also spotlight musical selections from the Boston Pops's recently released album, "Lights, Camera...Music! Six Decades of John Williams."
The Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular will receive a multi-platform distribution to appeal to the widest spectrum of viewers, from the loyal traditional television watcher and radio listener to the adventurous viewer, both here in Boston, throughout the country, and around the world, providing access to a wide variety of viewing and listening options, including online video streaming, HD radio, and mobile phone and tablet viewing apps.
The Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular will be broadcast on Bloomberg Television (see Tune In information below); radio listeners in the greater Boston area can hear the concert through Bloomberg's flagship station in Boston on 1200 AM and on SiriusXM satellite subscription radio on Channel 119.
The multi-platform distribution also features live concert video streams on Bloomberg.com and on the Bloomberg mobile and OTT platforms. Radio listeners across the country can also hear the concert through their Bloomberg HD radio station, or listen to it online at subscription-based iheartradio, 94.5 FM-HD2. For mobile listeners, the program can also be heard on the Bloomberg Radio app on either Apple or Android devices. Visit bostonpopsjuly4th.org for further details about the wide variety of options for viewing or listening to the show.
Where to Tune in for Bloomberg's Television Broadcast in the Greater Boston Area: Cable customers in the greater Boston area can view the Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular on DISH: Channel 203; Verizon: Channel 104; and DirectTV: Channel 353. For Comcast subscribers within the greater Boston area, Bloomberg TV can be found on channels 45, 757 or 844, depending on the location in the market. Viewers beyond the greater Boston area should check their local cable listings for information on where to tune in to see Bloomberg TV's Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular in their local areas. For a TV Tune-In Chart on where to view the Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular on Bloomberg Television in the Greater Boston area visit bostonpopsjuly4th.org.
This celebration of America's independence is brought to you by BANDSTAND on Broadway. From Andy Blankenbuehler, winner of the 2017 Tony Award® for Best Choreography and the 2016 Tony Award for HAMILTON, comes BANDSTAND-the new musical that explodes with the most high-octane, heart-stopping and best dancing on stage today.
1945. As America's soldiers come home to ticker-tape parades and overjoyed families, Private First Class Donny Novitski, singer and songwriter, returns to rebuild his life with only the shirt on his back and a dream in his heart.
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