The ceremony may have been sewn together but there was nothing makeshift or hand-me-down about the latest iteration of the Kennedy Center Honors, which aired on Sunday evening on CBS.
The Kennedy Center Honors are awarded annually to a select group of performing artists for their lifetime contribution to American culture. Typically the ceremony lasts all weekend, involving a lavish dinner and the presentation of medals on Saturday at the State Department, followed on Sunday by a White House reception and a black-tie gala at the Kennedy Center opera house which stretches long into the night.
Pandemic restrictions curtailed some of the pomp this year, as the recipients of the 43rd Kennedy Center Honors claimed their medals on the opera house stage in front of a scattered crowd. In fact the ceremony took place over several days in May, with homemade tributes and in-person performances stitched together to make the final broadcast.
The 43rd Kennedy Center Honors boasted a typically stellar cast: the actor, choreographer, director, and producer Debbie Allen who received Golden Globe and Emmy awards for her breakthrough role in the musical drama Fame; the folk stalwart and social justice advocate Joan Baez; country icon and perennial bestseller Garth Brooks; the internationally renowned violinist Midori; and the comedian Dick Van Dyke.
The rubber-limbed star of The Dick Van Dyke Show, Mary Poppins, and Diagnosis: Murder said that Joe Biden even bowed when he met Van Dyke and the other honourees at the Oval Office back in April, where Joan Baez sang a verse of ‘Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around’ in her rich soprano.
Gloria Estefan hosted the ceremony, as the big names and star attractions waited in line to pay tribute. Joan Baez arrived arm-in-arm with the infectious expert Anthony Fauci, Shonda Rhimes called Debbie Allen ‘an inspiration and a symbol of power’, while Chita Rivera, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Bryan Cranston, and Steve Martin joined Julie Andrews in honouring Van Dyke, with his Mary Poppins co-star adding ‘Like his character Bert in that movie, Dick seems to have found the secret to happiness’.
Yo-Yo Ma was the only artist to perform onstage during the doling out of awards, as he played the prelude to Bach’s Cello Suite No. 1 in G major in tribute to Midori. The other acts were spread out across the Kennedy Center, from the concert halls to the outdoor terraces and driveway.
Vanessa Hudgens and a team of dancers performed ‘Fame’, Mary Chapin Carpenter and Emmylou Harris sang ‘We Shall Overcome’ in tribute to Joan Baez, and Garth Brooks whooped, hollered, and grew tearful as Kelly Clarkson and James Taylor performed, before Gladys Knight brought down the curtain with a rendition of ‘We Shall Be Free’.
Meanwhile Derek Hough, Pentatonix and Aaron Tveit, and Laura Osnes regaled Dick Van Dyke with recitals from Mary Poppins, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and his original Broadway hit Bye Bye Birdie. Van Dyke remarked:
‘There was some great, great dancing tonight. They were doing dance numbers I couldn’t have done, I’m glad I didn’t have that choreographer! Blew me away! All of those numbers reminded me of how much fun I had over the years. I wasn’t working for a living, they were paying me to play. Everything I did I just enjoyed it.’
