Robert De Niro, Morgan Freeman and Ed Harris Join Boston Pops for World Premiere of The Dream Lives On: A Portrait of the Kennedy Brothers

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Acclaimed actors Robert De Niro, Ed Harris, and Morgan Freeman give life to the words of John, Robert, and Edward Kennedy, respectively, when they join conductor Keith Lockhart, the Boston Pops Orchestra, and the Tanglewood Festival Chorus for the world premiere performance of The Dream Lives On: A Portrait of the Kennedy Brothers—the centerpiece of the Boston Pops 125th anniversary season celebration—on May 18, at 8 p.m. (repeated on May 19), at Symphony Hall in Boston, MA. Celebrating the legacies of these three influential and inspiring Massachusetts native sons, The Dream Lives On—composed by Peter Boyer with Tony Award-winning lyricist Lynn Ahrens—was commissioned by Keith Lockhart and the Boston Pops. This new multi-media work combines quotes from speeches by the Kennedy brothers with original text and video, accompanied by a dramatic orchestral and choral score. The Dream Lives On pays tribute to the towering achievements and singular spirit epitomized by the Kennedy brothers—the call to public service, drive for social change, and the legacy of optimism for America’s future. The title of the work was taken from the closing lines of Ted Kennedy’s speech at the 2008 Democratic National Convention.

Emmy Award-winner Alec Baldwin will join the Pops to narrate The Dream Lives On at Tanglewood, the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra (parent organization of the Boston Pops) in Lenox, MA on July 18, at 2:30 p.m. Academy Award-winner Chris Cooper will serve as narrator for a special performance of the new work on the Hyannis Village Green in Hyannis, MA, home to generations of Kennedys, on August 1, at 5 p.m. The work was written with more than one performance adaptation in mind: it can be performed with four narrators, chorus, and orchestra or it can be performed with a single narrator and orchestra (optional chorus).

In addition to the repeat performance of the work at Presidents at Pops on May 19 (with Robert De Niro, Morgan Freeman, and Ed Harris narrating), The Dream Lives On will receive additional performances during the Pops 125th anniversary season celebration on May 20, 21, and 22, and on July 3 and 4 at the Charles River Esplanade as part of the annual Pops Fourth of July Fireworks Spectacular concert (narrator/narrators for these performances to be announced at a later date). Commissioning of The Dream Lives On: A Portrait of the Kennedy Brothers was made possible by generous support provided by Paul and Catherine Braverman and Robert and Evelyn Doran.

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