Porgy and Bess—the Metropolitan Opera production, which premiered in 2019 and returned, post-pandemic in 2021—is back on stage at Lincoln Center. George Gershwin’s music is, as always, the key component of the piece. With conductor Kwamé Ryan doing a masterful job leading the Met orchestra through Gershwin’s powerful orchestrations, and with a full choral complement mining the glories of the score, the present engagement (13 performances in all, through January 24) offers a grand opportunity for audiences to be enveloped by what is arguably the best of Gershwin.
Is this the finest production ever, or in memory? No. But that’s not the point. Porgy and Bess is a majestic piece of work, to say the least. Audiences back in 1935—including diehard fans of George Gershwin, a self-trained tunesmith from the streets—sat astonished, not only by the richness of the work but by the fact that George (or any American songwriter) could come up with it. The pop-song components of the piece (“It Ain’t Necessarily So,” “I Got Plenty o’ Nuttin’,” “There’s a Boat Dat’s Leavin’ Soon for New York”), sure; but “Summertime,” “My Man’s Gone Now,” “Bess, You Is My Woman Now,” “I Loves You Porgy”? These are a far stretch from “I Got Rhythm,” “Embraceable You” and the song which put him on the proverbial Tin Pan Alley map, “Swanee.”
The strengths of this rendition—a co-production of the Metropolitan Opera, the Dutch National Opera of Amsterdam, and the English National Opera—come from the pit, the principals (by and large) and the five dozen-or-so singers. Alfred Walker and Brittany Renee do a satisfactory job as Porgy and Bess, singing up an operatic storm while acting like, well, accomplished opera singers. Walker, towering over much of the cast with crutch and leg brace fashioned in the prop shop, seems rather robust for Porgy; certainly, he does not look like “half-a-man” compared to the villainous Crown (Ryan Speedo Green). Walker, in fact, originated Crown in this production, while Green was promoted from the smaller role of Jake. Which might be why they, and Renee, don’t seem like the first choice for the roles; they were later replacements. The finest performances come from two players who have been in their roles since 2019: Denyce Graves (as Maria) and Latonia Moore (as Serena). Singing, acting, or simply standing their ground observing the others, both are magnificent.
Stage director James Robinson (now Artistic Director of Seattle Opera) does a functional job, moving his operatic cast through their paces in a satisfactory manner albeit without much in the way of theatrical invention. Set designer Michael Yeargan—who has created consistent Broadway magic with his work on such productions as The Light in the Piazza, South Pacific and The King and I, all at Lincoln Center Theater next door—seems to be hampered here, forced to make due with one of those skeletal unit sets where you see through the walls, with various cast members moving around upstage while the audience might more profitably be concentrating on the scenes in progress. Yeargan’s frequent collaborators Catherine Zuber (costumes) and Donald Holder (lights) are also on hand.
More distressing is the choreography by Camille A. Brown, with a team of eight dancers appearing now and again to “interpret” the words for us. “It Ain’t Necessarily So” is a masterpiece of music and words, perfectly crafted by the authors as a song-and-dance showpiece by Sportin’ Life. Out come the dancers to act out the story of Jonah and the whale, distracting us from song and singer. More than once through the three-hour affair, this viewer felt like he had wandered into a production of Alvin Ailey’s Revelations.
But these are minor quibbles compared to the riches of the evening. The score rings through the opera house, clearly demonstrating just how remarkable Gershwin’s masterwork is. If you love Porgy, treat yourself to this not-so-frequent opportunity to revel in its glories. If you are only tangentially familiar, you’ll likely walk away entranced. And those who were less-than-enchanted by the last Broadway revival, in 2012—in which the artistic team saw fit to incorporate detrimental adaptations and “improvements”—deserve the opportunity to experience what the authors actually intended.
Let us leave the discussion with a word about credits. For some years, now, the piece has been officially called The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess. This is the choice of executors and attorneys; George (who died in 1937) and Ira (who died in 1983) would likely be appalled by the prominence of their name at the exclusion of DuBose Heyward, who wrote the novel Porgy in 1925. But Heyward died in 1940, his wife Dorothy (who collaborated with him on the 1927 play version) in 1961, and their daughter Jenifer in 1984. The inheritors of the rights eventually saw fit to officially credit the work to the infinitely more famous Gershwins.
For the record: Porgy and Bess was for the most part a collaboration between George Gershwin (who composed and orchestrated the music) and DuBose Heyward (who wrote the libretto and lyrics). George’s brother and principal collaborator Ira was called in to help out on the more sophisticated passages, specifically including the material for the Harlem-bound Sportin’ Life. The score contains approximately 28 identifiable songs and musical scenes. Of these, five have lyrics by Ira (including “It Ain’t Necessarily So,” “There’s a Boat Dat’s Leavin’ Soon for New York,” and the remarkable trio “Oh Bess, Oh Where’s My Bess?”); three are collaborations between DuBose and Ira (“Bess, You Is My Woman,” “I Loves You Porgy” and “I Got Plenty o’ Nuttin”). The other 20 are not by “the Gershwins,” but by George Gershwin and DuBose Heyward. The extent of authorship was reflected, naturally enough, in money: the combined authors’ royalty of 10 percent was apportioned with 5 percent to George, 4 percent to DuBose, and 1% to Ira.
But enough. Take advantage of the presence of Porgy and Bess, while you can if you can. The songs are justly famous and readily available in numerous recordings, sure; but there is nothing quite like the impact of watching and hearing the score performed by a full corps of top-flight singers and musicians.
Porgy and Bess opened December 2, 2025, at the Metropolitan Opera House and runs through January 24, 2026. Tickets and information: metopera.org
