Kelli O’Hara and Jabez Cheeseman.
Courtesy of Matthew Murphy
Broadway’s Best: The King and I
Enjoy the Tony Award-winning revival of the classic musical
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Fred Vigeant
Courtesy of Matthew Murphy
Kelli O’Hara and Jabez Cheeseman.
Great Performances continues the Broadway’s Best series with The King and I.
The year is 1862, and East and West collide when British schoolteacher Anna Leonowens arrives in Siam (modern day Thailand) to take up her post instructing the royal household of children from the King’s several wives. Despite her sharp wit and strong will, nothing has prepared Anna for the lessons this rich and complicated new land has to teach her—or for the powerful connection she will forge with its imperious but conflicted King.
The score features a treasure trove of timeless Rodgers & Hammerstein hits including “I Whistle a Happy Tune,” “We Kiss in a Shadow,” “Getting to Know You,” “Something Wonderful,” “I Have Dreamed” and “Shall We Dance?” With a cast of over 50 people, this “first-rate, sumptuous” (The New York Times) production was “too beautiful to miss” (New York magazine).
Courtesy of Matthew Murphy
Kelli O’Hara and Ken Watanabe
The production was recorded during its 2018 run in London’s West End with original Lincoln Center Theater cast members Ken Watanabe as the King and Kelli O’Hara in her Tony-winning performance as Mrs. Anna, along with Ruthie Ann Miles as “head wife” Lady Thiang, who won the 2015 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a musical.
Watch Great Performances The King and I Friday November 8 at 9:00pm on WITF. Stream the show on WITF’s website or through the PBS Video App. WITF Passport members have access to view the entire Broadway’s Best series including past performances from Broadway.
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