SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Oct. 13, 2024, (Gephardt Daily) — Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square officials have announced the featured guest artist for the annual Christmas concert, to be recorded on Dec. 19, 20, and 21 in the Conference Center.
This year’s artist will be Tony Award-winning singer and actress Ruthie Ann Miles. A narrator will be announced later.
“Under the direction of Mack Wilberg, music director of the Choir, and Ryan Murphy, associate music director, Miles will ring in the Christmas spirit with a live audience,” says a statement issued by officials with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
“The Conference Center will be filled to its full capacity of 21,000 people for the first time since before the pandemic. Construction on and around Temple Square also limited seating.”
Miles is known for her work on Broadway and television. She is on Broadway in “McNeal,” now playing at the Lincoln Center Theater. Her notable roles include Margaret Johnson in “The Light in the Piazza” and as the beggar woman in “Sweeney Todd,” for which she received a Tony nomination in 2023.
“Ruthie Ann Miles is acclaimed for her vocal talents paired with unforgettable performances,” Wilberg said in the prepared release. “We are delighted to have her perform with the Choir and Orchestra to bring joy into the hearts of our audiences as we celebrate the Savior’s birth.”
Raised in a musical household in Hawaii, Miles began singing and playing instruments at an early age, eventually earning a master’s degree in vocal performance from New York University Steinhardt. Career highlights include her acclaimed performance in “Here Lies Love,” her Broadway debut in “The King And I,” for which she won a Tony Award and was nominated for Grammy and Olivier Awards, and various concert performances with renowned orchestras.
On television, she is known for roles in “All Rise” and “The Americans,” and she voiced the character of Mother in Netflix’s “Over the Moon,” the news release says.
Ticket information
Tickets to this year’s Christmas concert are complimentary but required. They will be distributed through a random selection process and limited to four tickets per household. Those wishing to request tickets are invited to sign up at thetabernaclechoir.org/christmas-concert-2024 during the registration period, which runs from Tuesday, Oct. 15 at noon to Friday, Nov. 1 at 11:59 p.m. Mountain Daylight Time. Admission will be open to those 8 years and older.
A standby line for the Christmas concerts will form in the Tabernacle on Temple Square 90 minutes prior to concert time at 8 p.m.
Tickets will not be required for the 30-minute “Music and the Spoken Word” broadcast on Sunday morning, Dec. 22, at 9:30 a.m. following the concerts. Miles is scheduled to perform on the broadcast.
2023 concert to air
For the live concert in 2023, Broadway’s Michael Maliakel and film and television actor Lesley Nichol joined with the Choir, the Orchestra, and the Bells at Temple Square, which was taped for airing this year. The concert, titled “Joy: Christmas with The Tabernacle Choir,” will be broadcast on PBS on Dec. 17 at 8 p.m. and Dec. 24 at 9:30 p.m. It will also run on BYUtv Dec. 21-25.
The Choir will release the CD and DVD versions of last year’s Christmas concert.
A Grammy Award–winning, multiple Emmy Award–winning, all-volunteer choral ensemble, The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square is made up of 360 men and women who join their talents to create their trademark, instantly recognizable sound. They are accompanied by the Orchestra at Temple Square, a 150-member symphony orchestra, and the Bells at Temple Square, a 32-member handbell choir, who are also all volunteers.
For more information, visit the Tabernacle Choir’s website.
