A new performance by the Boston Gay Men’s Chorus will be part of the 79th annual lighting celebration of the Boston Common tree, which happens virtually this year due to pandemic protocol. Though there will be no in-person gathering, everyone’s invited to catch the festivities on WCVB-TV Channel 5.
Hosted by Anthony Everett and Shayna Seymour of “Chronicle,” the broadcast begins at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 3. (The show will be re-aired on Christmas Eve.)
In the broadcast celebration, BGMC will share their newly created virtual video “Up on the Housetop,” where 112 Chorus members recorded themselves individually (in a socially distant and safe way) and blended together using the magic of technology.
Along with the BGMC, there’ll be performances by Keith Lockhart and the Boston Pops, Nicholas Christopher from “Hamilton” and Grammy Award-winner Shaggy. Boston Mayor Marty Walsh and Santa Claus will count down the tree lighting.
What’s more, premiering on Saturday, December 12, Boston’s WCVB-TV Channel 5 will air “Home for the Holidays,” a half-hour television special featuring highlights from the BGMC’s winter concerts throughout the years. The show will be broadcast on WCVB-TV on Dec. 12 and 13, and available for streaming On Demand and via YouTube; for details check your local listings or go to BGMC’s “Home for the Holidays” web page.
Boston’s own Randy Price, the country’s first openly gay TV news anchor, will deliver an introduction to the holiday special.
“It’s such a joy to share this with people who might not otherwise come to a chorus concert,” BGMC music director Reuben M. Reynolds III told Boston Spirit. “We certainly don’t hide who we are. I love the idea that people might just stumble upon it, turn it on in the middle of a number, be enjoying it, and then suddenly discover it’s a gay men’s chorus.”
Reynolds says he focused on finding the most truly “uplifting” performances that are inclusive of all holiday traditions, including those that represent the African-American and Jewish experience. Expect moving interpretations of classics like “Here We Come A Wassailing” and “Silent Night,” the latter accompanied with sign language, as well as playful performances of modern music like “Sparklejollytwinklejingley” (from the movie “Elf”) and “Pink Christmas,” a particularly colorful number that features trees awash in rosy lights.
For more, go to bgmc.org.
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