Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts today announced that Audra has signed on as the official host of the landmark PBS series Live From Lincoln Center. In her new role, she will host seven broadcasts from December 2012 through Spring 2013 including “The Richard Tucker Opera Gala” on Thursday, December 13 and the New York Philharmonic’s New Year’s Eve Gala, “One Singular Sensation: Celebrating Marvin Hamlisch,” on Monday, December 31. She will also perform in the New Year’s Eve live telecast. (Check local listings.)

Audra said, “I grew up watching Live From Lincoln Center and Beverly Sills, the great soprano who used to regularly host the series, was such an inspiration to me. Ever since I moved to New York to attend The Juilliard School, I’ve spent so much of my life at Lincoln Center that I consider it my home away from home. Needless to say, I was incredibly honored when Live From Lincoln Center invited me to become the host.”

“Audra’s Lincoln Center roots run deep and wide,” said Elizabeth Scott, Chief Media and Digital Officer for Lincoln Center, and executive in charge of the series. “She’s performed on every major Lincoln Center stage, and her appearances on Live From Lincoln Center are among the most enduring presentations in the series’ 37-year history. We’re thrilled that this consummate artist–whose passion for the performing arts is infectious–will be the new face of Live From Lincoln Center. We can’t imagine a more perfect match.”

Audra made her Broadway debut in The Secret Garden while still a classical voice student at The Juilliard School. Before long, she earned her first of five Tony Awards for her role in Lincoln Center Theater’s 1994 production of Carousel.

Thanks to Live From Lincoln Center, viewers across the country have experienced Audra’s performances in “Stephen Sondheim’sPassion” with Patti Lupone, “Audra McDonald Sings the Movies” with the New York Philharmonic, and more. Most recently, she hosted “The Philharmonic Opening Night Gala with Itzhak Perlman.” Upcoming programs will be announced shortly.

Live From Lincoln Center is in its 37^th broadcast season. The series has received 13 Emmy Awards to date. Live From Lincoln Center has made the world’s greatest artists on Lincoln Center’s renowned stages accessible to home viewers in virtually every corner of the United States.

Audra will ring in the New Year with Joshua Bell, Raúl Esparza, Michael Feinstein, Maria Friedman, Josh Groban, Megan Hilty, Kelli O’Hara, and Frederica von Stade at New York’s Avery Fisher Hall in a nationally televised concert to celebrate the life and music of the late composer-conductor Marvin Hamlisch. Presented by the New York Philharmonic and titled “One Singular Sensation: Celebrating Marvin Hamlisch,” the performance will feature selections from Hamlisch’s works for stage and film, including his iconic musicals A Chorus Line and Sweet Smell of Success. Paul Gemignani will conduct and Lonny Price will direct the performance. The live telecast will mark Audra’s third time hosting a Live From Lincoln Center broadcast on PBS this season and her first time playing the dual role of host and performer. Earlier this season, she hosted the Live From Lincoln Center broadcast of the New York Philharmonic’s Opening Night Gala, and on December 13 she hosts the telecast of the Richard Tucker Opera Gala.

Audra’s appearance on Sesame Street as a singing chicken muppet in “Elmo the Musical” is now online. In the installment titled “Circus the Musical,” she and Elmo perform a duet titled, “Keep on Clucking”.  For more information, visit www.sesamestreet.org.

Audra McDonald will be honored by PFLAG NYC (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays of New York City) at the organization’s 32nd annual awards gala at Tribeca Three Sixty on Monday, October 15.

Audra will receive the PFLAG NYC “Stay Close” Celebrity Leadership Award in recognition of her years advocating full equality for all lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people and for her participation in the PFLAG NYC “Stay Close” campaign which features straight celebrities appearing with their LGBT loved ones. This past April, Audra and her now-husband Will Swenson were given the “Straight for Equality Award” at PFLAG’s Fourth Annual Straight for Equality Gala.

The Drama League has announced that Audra will be the Honoree of its 29th Musical Celebration of Broadway on February 11, 2013 at Manhattan’s famed Pierre Hotel. The black-tie gala supports The Drama League’s educational initiatives for promising young artists. This announcement comes just months after Audra received the Drama League’s 2012 Distinguished Performance Award for her role in The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess. “Audra McDonald, in my view, is the once-in-a-generation performer of our time,” Drama League executive director Gabriel Shanks said in a statement. “We are thrilled to have the opportunity to honor her achievements in film, television, recording, and in the theater.”

The Musical Celebration of Broadway Honoring Audra McDonald will bring together 500 of New York City’s most influential arts supporters, celebrities, and luminaries for an evening of cocktails, dinner, and the acclaimed, unforgettable musical revue. Featuring dozens of stars from film, television and theater, the Musical Celebration of Broadway will feature songs from Audra’s many Broadway triumphs, including Carousel, Ragtime, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, Marie Christine, 110 In The Shade; her operatic and concert work, including her celebrated turns in Passion and Mahagonny; and her award-winning albums “Way Back To Paradise,” “How Glory Goes,” “Happy Songs” and “Build A Bridge.” Visit The Drama League’s website for more information on this special evening.

On Thursday, September 27, Audra returns to PBS’s Live from Lincoln Center to host the broadcast of the New York Philharmonic’s Opening Night Gala. This marks Audra’s first time hosting a broadcast for the Emmy-winning program. New York Philharmonic Music Director Alan Gilbert will lead the orchestra and special guest, violinist Ithak Perlman, in a program featuring works from legendary Russian composer Tchaikovsky to beloved Hollywood film composer John Williams.  A Live from Lincoln Center series veteran, Audra headlined the New York Philharmonic’s annual New Year’s Gala in 2006 and later that year starred in  “Audra McDonald and Friends” with Patti LuPone, Nellie McKay, and Beverly Sills.  Check your local listings to see when it’s airing on your local PBS station.