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arts & culture amplifiedTHE ARTS AND CULTURE SPEAK TO OURDEEPEST YEARNINGS. DRAMA, MUSIC,DANCE, LITERATURE, THE VISUAL ARTS,CRAFTS. THEY HELP US EXPRESS OURSELVES,LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR WORLD, EXPERIENCEJOY, AND TRANSCEND CULTURAL DIFFERENCES.WGBH OFFERS EVERYONE ACCESS TO THEBEST OUR CULTURE HAS TO OFFER. NATIONALAUDIENCES THRILL TO THE PROGRAMS WEPRODUCE FOR PBS. IT’S THE SAME STORYCLOSER TO HOME, WHERE WE REGULARLYSHINE A SPOTLIGHT ON BOSTON AND NEWENGLAND’S EXTRAORDINARY CULTURAL BOUNTY.17.1MILLIONVIEWERS TUNED IN SEASON 2OF DOWNTON ABBEYPhenomenal AppealWGBH’s Masterpiece sweeps audiences up in the timeless appeal of greatdrama—compellingly told, superbly acted, and sumptuously designed.Downton Abbey on Masterpiece has become a cultural phenomenon, inspiringfashion, entertainment, and popular taste while drawing raves from critics andfans, including a couple who live in the White House. The series has shatteredMasterpiece records for television viewing, video views, and Twitter buzz. AmongDownton Abbey’s awards—nearly enough to fill the great house itself—ninePrimetime Emmys® and a Golden Globe® take pride of place.Another WGBH-produced phenomenon is Antiques Roadshow. Its winningcombination of arts and history lesson, treasure hunt, and human drama isirresistible to its devoted followers, who have made it PBS’s most-watched primetimeseries and a must-visit Web and Facebook destination. Even Boston’s MayorThomas Menino is a fan—one of thousands who queued up for Roadshow’s 2012stop in Beantown. (The value of the city-owned painting toted by the hopefulMayor? $45,000–$50,000.)Success breeds trust…and the launch of two new WGBH-produced PBSseries in 2012. Roadshow spawned Market Warriors to highlight competition andcommerce in the antiques world, while Broadway or Bust pulled back the curtainon extraordinary young performers and dedicated coaches. The three-part seriesfollowed 60 finalists—chosen from 50,000 contestants—to the Great White Way,where they competed in the National High School Musical Theater Awards.Audiences and critics came away inspired by their talent, their stories, their drive,their camaraderie—the drama was truly in their dreams.cooking, creativity, and cultureSince the days of Julia Child, cooking has always been somethingmore on WGBH. On Simply Ming, which toasted its 10th anniversaryin 2012, super chef Ming Tsai poses the same question we all askourselves every day: What’s in the fridge, and how can I turn thatinto dinner? The masterful Ming teaches us not only about food, butabout the creative process itself. Food also is a window into cultures,as the diverse restaurateurs on our new local TV show NeighborhoodKitchens make deliciously clear.Celebrating the Local Scene150,000+VIEWS IN 2012 OF WGBHMUSIC’S VIDEO CHANNELSFEATURING LIVE-FROM-WGBHPERFORMANCES ACROSSGENRES: CLASSICAL, JAZZ,CELTIC, INDIE, FOLKProviding a wider stage in celebration of our region’s vibrant arts scene hasbeen constant to WGBH’s core mission, from Arthur Fiedler to Eric Jackson.In 2012, that stage grew even larger, with Boston’s first-ever Summer ArtsWeekend, a collaboration between WGBH and The Boston Globe, presented byCitizens Bank, that drew a diverse crowd of 17,000 to Copley Square. Who elsebut WGBH would pair up-and-coming classical trumpeter Alison Balsom withindie-folk diva Suzanne Vega? Or program both the Preservation Hall Jazz Bandand a Baroque Brunch with popular Classical New England host Laura Carlo?WGBH also is connecting performers and audiences through timelystories by Jared Bowen, Boston’s only full-time TV arts reporter and the winnerof the Massachusetts Cultural Council’s 2013 Commonwealth Award in media.And we celebrated the 10th anniversary of what has become a beloved regionaltradition: Brian O’Donovan’s popular Christmas Celtic Sojourn concerts. Morethan 10,000 attended this year’s event at five venues across New England.And then there’s Goat Rodeo: world-renowned, Boston-based cellistYo-Yo Ma’s musical collaboration with string virtuosos Chris Thile, StuartDuncan, and Edgar Meyer. The foursome played their genre-transcendingfusion of classical and bluegrass at a Celebrity Series of Boston-producedconcert at the House of Blues, and WGBH was there to capture every note fora PBS special, The Goat Rodeo Sessions Live!, while simultaneously beamingthe show out to 400 movie theaters nationwide.6 WGBH ANNUAL REPORT 2012 | 2013 7