Discover Grace Bumbry’s inspiring rise to global opera fame.
Great Performances: The Magic of Grace Bumbry airs Friday, October 3 at 9 p.m. on WXXI-TV and streams live on the WXXI app.
The Magic of Grace Bumbry recounts the story of the African American Missouri native who rose to fame in the 1960s international opera scene. Bumbry’s rise began in the 1950s when she won a radio competition at the age of 17. Encountering racism when she was prevented from studying at the St. Louis Institute of Music, she nevertheless achieved international renown with her breakthrough performance in Wagner’s “Tannhäuser” at the 1961 Bayreuth Festival, in which she appeared for 40 performances. The film explores Grace Bumbry’s groundbreaking career, featuring performances from her early career leading up to her role in the 1966 Salzburg Festival production of “Carmen,” directed by German conductor Herbert von Karajan.
The film follows the format of previous documentaries from Great Performances’ “Magic of” series, including The Magic of Spirituals highlighting opera stars Kathleen Battle and Jessye Norman and The Magic of Nureyev, which explored the career of ballet dancer and choreographer Rudolf Nureyev. Featuring interviews with singer and vocal coach David Lee Brewer, opera singer Felicia Weathers, opera singer Anna Tomowa-Sintow and La Scala general director Dominique Meyer.