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GREAT PERFORMANCES “CHESS IN CONCERT”
JUNE 17 AT 9 PM
EIGHT/KAET-TV

– Josh Groban, Idina Menzel, Adam Pascal Make All the Right Moves in Musical by ABBA Composers Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus –

Wicked’s Idina Menzel and Rent’s Adam Pascal join Great Performances favorite Josh Groban in a spectacular London concert revival of Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus’ 1986 cult musical Chess. Featuring diamond-sharp lyrics by Tim Rice (Evita, The Lion King), the hit-filled production (“One Night in Bangkok,” “I Know Him So Well,” “The Anthem”) was recorded in performance on May 12, 2008, at Royal Albert Hall. Great Performances “Chess in Concert” airs Wednesday, June 17, 2009 at 9 p.m. on Eight.

“A fantastic night” proclaimed musicOMH.com, while thestage.co.uk asked, “Is there an original pop musical stuffed with better melodies?” — neatly echoing Time’s initial 1988 assessment: “One of the best rock scores ever produced.” Adding to the excitement is the 50-piece City of London Philharmonic, led by David Firman, and the 100-voice West End Chorus.

ABBA composers Andersson and Ulvaeus created their first musical theater work more than a decade before striking pay dirt with their phenomenon, Mamma Mia!. It was the inspired idea of lyricist/librettist Rice to match the pair with his Cold War tale: the East/West Chess Championship and the romantic triangle that develops among the Russian and American competitors and the beautiful woman who manages one and falls in love with the other. Chart-topper Groban (Awake, Closer, Noël) sings the Russian player, Anatoly; Rent Tony and Drama Desk Award-nominee Pascal is the American, Freddie; and Tony Award-winner Menzel (Wicked) is Florence, the woman between them.

Josh Groban includes among his many Great Performances appearances “Josh Groban in Concert” (2002), “Josh Groban at the Greek” (2004) and last December’s “Hitman: David Foster and Friends.” Adam Pascal was most recently seen in the series’ “My Favorite Broadway: The Love Songs” (2001). “Chess in Concert”marks Idina Menzel’s Great Performances debut.

About Eight/KAET-TV
Eight, Arizona PBS specializes in the education of children, in-depth news and public affairs, lifelong learning, and the celebration of arts and culture — utilizing the power of noncommercial television, the Internet, educational outreach services, and community-based initiatives. The PBS station began broadcasting from the campus of Arizona State University on January 30, 1961.  Now more than 80 percent of Arizonans receive the signal through a network of translators, cable and satellite systems.  With more than 1.3 million viewers each week, Eight consistently ranks among the most-viewed public television stations per capita in the country.  Arizonans provide more than 60 percent of the station’s annual budget. For more information, visit www.azpbs.org.

Eight is a member-supported service of Arizona State University.