PBS Arts Fall Festival to feature Rainn Wilson, Roseanne Cash, others

by Karl J. Paloucek

 

This morning, PBS announced its list of hosts for its nine-part Arts Fall Festival. The series debuts Friday, Oct. 14 and continues each Friday — except Dec. 9 — through Dec. 16, and features a variety of productions from all over the country. Appropriately, the hosts for each event were chosen for their special connections to either the productions or to the cities from which they originate.

Rainn Wilson (The Office) starts things off Oct. 14 in the Twin Cities in a Gilbert and Sullivan sort of way with PBS Arts From Minnesota: The Guthrie Theater Presents H.M.S. Pinafore. Wilson is an alum of the Guthrie, where he appeared in productions of Philadelphia, Here I Come!, The Venetian Twins and The Importance of Being Earnest.

The next stop takes viewers to Seattle, home of Frasier, Starbucks … and that ’90s grunge thing. Oct. 21, director Taylor Hackford hosts PBS Arts From Seattle: American Masters: Pearl Jam Twenty. Acclaimed for his Academy Award-winning film Ray, as well as An Officer and a Gentlemen, Against All Odds and White Nights, Hackford is also president of the Directors Guild of America, and with his passion for music is a natural to intro Cameron Crowe’s overview of this storied band that survived the initial burst of grunge to become an enduring rock phenomenon.

Traversing the country nearly as far southeast as possible, the festival moves to Miami, where Academy Award-nominated actor Andy Garcia hosts PBS Arts From Miami: Great Performances: Miami City Ballet Dances Balanchine and Tharp Oct. 28. Exiled with his family from Cuba when he was 5, Garcia studied his craft at Florida International University and still maintains a residence in the city.

Grammy-winning singer/songwriter Roseanne Cash takes up hosting duties Nov. 4 when she hosts PBS Arts From the Blue Ridge Mountains: Give Me the Banjo. Featuring banjo legend Earl Scruggs, with whom Ms. Cash has sung, the presentation will also feature Roseanne, the illustrious daughter of Johnny Cash, in discussion with country music star Rodney Crowell about the influence the instrument has had on their respective careers.

Nov. 25 brings one of music’s most awarded female musicians, Linda Ronstadt, out to host PBS Arts From Los Angeles: Great Performances: Il Postino From LA Opera featuring celebrated tenor Plácido Domingo. With 10 Grammys, an Emmy, two Academy of Country Music awards and more, the versatile Ms. Ronstadt also can claim an ALMA award (honoring Latino artists who promote a positive image of their community) from the hands of Domingo, making this a joyous reunion of host and star.

The last three events in the circuit are yet to be announced, but Investigation Discovery’s Paula Zahn — host of On the Case With Paula Zahn — takes over the festival’s hosting duties in New York City for PBS Arts From New York: Great Performances: Andrea Bocelli Live in Central Park. In addition to being an experienced television host, Zahn is also an accomplished cellist, having performed extensively worldwide on stages from Seoul to St. Petersburg, including her 1992 Carnegie Hall debut in New York City.

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Photo: Robyn Von Swank