From Dust to Dreams: Opening Night at the Smith Center for Performing Arts

Actor and stage performer Neil Patrick Harris hosts this PBS-aired filming of the opening night festivities at Las Vegas's Smith Center for the Performing Arts. Performing on an art deco-style stage, the artists hail from a wide array of genres, including jazz (trumpeter Arturo Sandoval), country (Martina McBride), pop (Jennifer Hudson, Carole King), rock (John Fogerty), R&B (Mavis Staples), classical (violinist Joshua Bell), dance (a Twyla Tharp-Frank Sinatra suite), and musical theater (14 show tunes). Among the theater stars, Brian Stokes Mitchell makes the biggest impression with an impassioned version of "Impossible Dream" from Man of La Mancha. Other Broadway notables include Cheyenne Jackson, Benjamin Walker, and Sherie Rene Scott, who perform songs from West Side Story, Sweet Charity, Guys and Dolls, and other popular musicals. Aside from the solo performances, several artists also perform together: McBride duets with Pat Monahan from Train, while Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard team up (and share the stage with Emmylou Harris). Of the non-Broadway performers, McBride and Hudson exhibit the strongest singing, while Staples and Haggard understandably appear to have lost a bit of vocal power over the decades, although they maintain their singular styles. The fancy dress crowd here is pretty sedate for most of the evening until Fogerty inspires a little dancing with a rousing rendition of "Proud Mary," but they save their standing ovations for Hudson and Bell. Presented in 5.1 surround sound and stereo, this is recommended. (K. Fennessy)