Broadway’s Lost Treasures To Be Unearthed on PBS

Aside from presenting scenes and songs from Broadway musicals to potential audiences outside New York, the annual Antoinette Perry (Tony) Awards broadcasts have long been an excellent tool for preserving these ephemeral performances for posterity. Broadway’s Lost Treasures, a collection of 17 musical sequences featuring some of Broadway’s biggest stars and most stirring songs, will be telecast over PBS on August 10 as part of the network’s August pledge drive. (Check your local listings for exact broadcast times.)

Many of the sequences included in the program were taken from the landmark 25th anniversary Tony Award broadcast in 1971, during which a number of Broadway’s most famous performers took the stage to recreate the numbers they originally made famous.

The program is hosted by five Tony-winning Broadway luminaries: Angela Lansbury (honored for her performances in Mame, Dear World, Gypsy, and Sweeney Todd), Jerry Orbach (Tony winner for Promises, Promises and star of Chicago and 42nd Street), Joel Grey (Tony winner for Cabaret), director and choreographer Tommy Tune (My One and Only, Nine, Grand Hotel), and Chita Rivera (Tony winner for The Rink and Kiss of the Spider Woman, and a star of the original productions of West Side Story and Bye Bye Birdie). The hosts introduce the numbers and provide historical and dramatic context for them.

Broadway’s Lost Treasures is divided into four sections, each celebrating a different type of performance. The sections and the numbers represented in each are listed below.

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Broadway Divas

• “Adelaide’s Lament” from Guys & Dolls — Vivian Blaine
• “A New Argentina” from Evita — Patti LuPone, Mandy Patinkin, Bob Gunton, and cast
• “The Worst Pies in London” from Sweeney Todd — Angela Lansbury
• “Before the Parade Passes By” from Hello, Dolly! — Carol Channing
• “Send in the Clowns” from A Little Night Music — Julie Andrews

Leading Men

• “If I Were a Rich Man” from Fiddler on the Roof — Zero Mostel
• “Shall We Dance” from The King and I — Yul Brynner and Patricia Morison
• “Hey There” from The Pajama Game — John Raitt
• “Trouble” from The Music Man — Robert Preston
• “The Impossible Dream” from Man of La Mancha — Richard Kiley

Dancin’

• “Willkommen” from Cabaret — Joel Grey and cast
• “Kickin’ the Clouds Away” from My One and Only — Tommy Tune, Twiggy, and cast
• “All That Jazz” and “Nowadays” from Chicago — Gwen Verdon and Chita Rivera
• “Lullaby of Broadway” from 42nd Street — Jerry Orbach and cast

Record Breakers

• “Tomorrow” from Annie — Andrea McArdle
• “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” from Dreamgirls — Jennifer Holliday and cast
• “Jellicle Songs” and “Memory” from Cats — Betty Buckley and cast