tvcal
Great Performances

Great Performances

1971Returning SeriesNext: Feb 2251 Seasons673 Episodes5.8TMDB
PBS

The best in the performing arts from across America and around the world including a diverse programming portfolio of classical music, opera, popular song, musical theater, dance, drama, and performance documentaries.

Season 52 Episodes

Browse every episode and jump into details.

Episode 1: Émigré: A Musical Drama with the NY Phil

Oct 25, 2024 · 1h 45m

Enjoy this semi-staged oratorio with the New York Philharmonic and an international cast telling the story of Jewish refugees in World War II Shanghai set to music by Aaron Zigman with lyrics by Mark Campbell and additional lyrics by Brock Walsh.

Episode 2: Land of Gold

Nov 1, 2024 · 1h 14m

Explore Peter Sellars' San Francisco Opera production of John Adams' "Girls of the Golden West" set during Gold Rush. Go behind the scenes with cast members Julia Bullock, J'Nai Bridges and others as they bring the show to life on stage.

Episode 4: Henry Mancini 100 at the Hollywood Bowl

Nov 29, 2024 · 1h 16m

Celebrate the centennial birthday of composer Henry Mancini with Michael Bublé, Cynthia Erivo, saxophonist Dave Koz, Monica Mancini and host Jeff Goldblum featuring Mancini’s signature songs and clips from his beloved movies and TV shows.

Episode 5: From Vienna: The New Year’s Celebration 2025

Jan 1, 2025 · 1h 25m

Experience this annual beloved concert from the Golden Hall of the Musikverein celebrating the 200th anniversary of the birth of Johann Strauss. Conducted by Riccardo Muti for the seventh time, PBS favorite Hugh Bonneville returns to host.

Episode 7: Andrea Bocelli 30th – The Celebration

Feb 28, 2025 · 1h 24m

Experience the world-renowned Italian tenor’s 30th anniversary concert from Tuscany featuring global superstars Ed Sheeran, David Foster, Katharine McPhee, Sofia Carson, Brian May, Jon Batiste and more. Directed by Grammy nominee and Emmy winner Sam Wrench.

Episode 8: Great Performances at the Met: Grounded

Mar 21, 2025 · 2h 45m

Follow a fighter pilot who operates a drone in a high-tech world battling both war and motherhood. With pressures from every angle, she balances being the perfect soldier, wife and mother. Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts Michael Mayer's staging.

Episode 9: Now Hear This “Chopin’s Polish Heart”

Apr 11, 2025 · 54m

Follow Scott Yoo and pianist Jan Lisiecki as they explore Chopin’s life, his Polish roots, and his journey to Paris taking a closer look at the composer's musical evolution and his deep connection to his homeland while living in France.

Episode 10: The Magic of Nureyev

Apr 11, 2025 · 54m

Experience Rudolf Nureyev’s revolutionary 1964 production of "Swan Lake" with ballerina Margot Fonteyn through extensive excerpts and interviews with their fellow dancers Michael Birkmeyer, Gisela Cech and others as they analyze Nureyev’s virtuosity.

Episode 11: Great Performances at the Met: Les Contes d’Hoffmann

Apr 13, 2025 · 4h 15m

Benjamin Bernheim performs the title role of the tormented poet for Offenbach’s final work. Hoffmann’s trio of lovers are sung by Erin Morley as the mechanical doll Olympia, Pretty Yende as the plagued diva Antonia, and Clémentine Margaine as the Venetian seductress Giulietta.

Episode 12: Now Hear This "Boccherini: Night Music"

Apr 18, 2025 · 54m

Join Scott Yoo and musicians on a night tour of Madrid to uncover Boccherini’s deep love for the city and learn how his iconic "Night Music of the Streets of Madrid" was inspired by his time in Spain, blending history and the pulse of the streets.

Episode 13: Now Hear This: Rachmaninoff Reborn

Apr 25, 2025 · 55m

Follow Rachmaninoff’s journey from a Russian aristocrat to an American artist after the Bolshevik revolution. Forced to rebuild at 44, he embraced modern technology, toured extensively and reinvented his career while longing for his lost homeland.

Episode 14: Now Hear This "Barrios: Chopin of the Guitar"

May 2, 2025 · 55m

Explore Agustin Barrios’ journey from rural Paraguay to global recognition as a guitar composer. Despite facing rejection and personal struggles, his innovative compositions and passion for Latin American folk music made him a 20th-century icon.

Episode 15: Next to Normal

May 9, 2025 · 2h 9m

Experience this Tony and Pulitzer Prize-winning Broadway musical directed by Michael Longhurst from London's Donmar Warehouse. Grammy nominee Caissie Levy stars in the story of a suburban family struggling with the effects of mental illness.

Episode 16: Yellow Face

May 16, 2025 · 1h 46m

Enjoy Tony winner David Henry Hwang’s comedy starring Daniel Dae Kim as an Asian American playwright who protests “yellowface” casting in the musical “Miss Saigon” only to mistakenly cast a white actor as the Asian lead in his own play.

Episode 17: Great Performances at the Met: Tosca

May 18, 2025 · 2h 6m

Lise Davidsen stars in the title role alongside Freddie De Tommaso in his company debut as her lover Cavaradossi with Quinn Kelsey as the chief of police Scarpia. Met Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts.

Episode 18: Girl from the North Country

May 23, 2025 · 2h 14m

Experience 20 reimagined, legendary Bob Dylan songs including “Forever Young,” “Hurricane,” and “Like A Rolling Stone" in this musical set in 1934 Minnesota where a group of travelers’ lives intersect in a guesthouse filled with music, life and hope.

Episode 19: Kiss Me, Kate

May 30, 2025 · 2h 30m

Enjoy this Cole Porter classic musical featuring iconic songs like “Another Op'nin', Another Show," “So In Love” and more. Tony winner Stephanie J. Block and Adrian Dunbar co-star in a backstage romantic comedy directed by Bartlett Sher.

Episode 20: Great Performances at the Met: Aida

Jun 13, 2025 · 2h 37m

Angel Blue makes her highly anticipated Met role debut as Aida, the Ethiopian princess torn between love and country. Met Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin takes the podium of Michael Mayer’s staging, featuring intricate projections of ancient Egypt and animations.

Episode 21: Great Performances at the Met: Fidelio

Jul 13, 2025 · 2h 27m

In her second role of this season of Great Performances at the Met, Lise Davidsen stars as Leonore, who risks everything to save her husband from the clutches of tyranny. David Butt Philip is the political prisoner Florestan, sharing the stage with Tomasz Konieczny as the villainous Don Pizarro, René Pape as the jailer Rocco, and Ying Fang as Marzelline.

Episode 22: Great Performances at the Met: Le Nozze di Figaro

Aug 17, 2025 · 2h 59m

Conductor Joana Mallwitz makes her Met debut leading the cast in Mozart’s comic masterpiece. Michael Sumuel is the clever valet Figaro opposite Olga Kulchynska as his betrothed, the wily maid Susanna. Joshua Hopkins plays the skirt-chasing Count, Federica Lombardi portrays his anguished wife, and Marianne Crebassa takes on the role of the adolescent page Cherubino.

Episode 24: Great Performances at the Met: Salome

Sep 14, 2025 · 2h 30m

The first new production of the opera at the Met in 20 years, director Claus Guth reimagines the biblical tale through Oscar Wilde’s haunting play, setting it in an intricate Victorian world filled with symbolism and contrasts of darkness and light. Headlining the new staging is Elza van den Heever as the abused and unhinged antiheroine Salome, who demands the head of Jochanaan.

Season 52 FAQ

Quick answers about this season's release timeline and episode lineup.

When did Great Performances Season 52 premiere?

Great Performances Season 52 premiered on October 25, 2024.

How many episodes are in Great Performances Season 52?

Great Performances Season 52 has 24 episodes.

What is the first episode of Great Performances Season 52?

The season opens with Season 52 Episode 1, "Émigré: A Musical Drama with the NY Phil". It aired on October 25, 2024.

Go to Season 52 Episode 1

Where to Watch

Loading...

Streaming data provided by JustWatch