Gershwin's Porgy and Bess

Experience the drama, romance, and beauty of Trevor Nunn’s superb Porgy and Bess in this 1992 studio production of George and Ira Gershwin’s groundbreaking opera. Based on Nunn’s original 1986 Glyndebourne Festival production and using Rattle and the London Philharmonic’s celebrated 1989 recording as its soundtrack, the made-for-TV filmed opera stars Willard White as Porgy, Cynthia Harmon as Bess, Gregg Baker as Crown, and Cynthia Clarey as Serena.

"Summertime”, “It ain’t necessarily so”, “Bess, you is my woman now”... the music of Gershwin’s unforgettable Porgy and Bess is beloved the world over. Inspired by the play Porgy by Dubose and Dorothy Heyward (in turn based on Dubose’s eponymous 1925 novel), Ira Gershwin’s libretto and George Gershwin’s music intertwine to make the story of a poverty-stricken African American community in Charleston (South Carolina) come alive, peopling the tale with men and women who are the embodiment of undying determination and vitality in the face of hardship. The opera's 1935 premiere challenged the taboos and prejudices of mainstream classical music culture, and it continues to do so to the present day.

At its heart, Porgy and Bess is the love story of Porgy, a crippled street-beggar, and Bess, a beautiful and kind woman dominated by her possessive and violent love Crown and her drug dealer Sportin’ Life. A complicated series of events unfolds, first bringing the title characters together for a happy but brief life together, and then tragically separating them.