PBS Announces Leonardo da Vinci Doc from Ken Burns, Filmed Performance of "Purlie Victorious," and More!

A new Ken Burns documentary about Leonardo da Vinci and a docuseries about disco top PBS’ announcements at today’s TCA Winter Press Tour.

(PBS)

What’s Happening:

PBS President and CEO Paula Kerger announced new programs and initiatives during her executive session at the TCA Winter Press Tour.
A two-part Ken Burns documentary about Leonardo da Vinci will debut next fall.
PBS will continue its pivotal role in addressing climate change through programs and specials that focus on the health of our oceans.
NOVA celebrates its milestone 50th anniversary with an impressive lineup of programs.
Viewers will be dancing and jiving this summer to the three-part series Disco: Soundtrack of a Revolution.
Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch will be broadcast through Great Performances, headlined by Hamilton star Leslie Odom, Jr.
And PBS KIDS is launching civics-themed content to help inspire kids to become an active part of their community.
More details on each of these announcements can be found below.

LEONARDO Da VINCI, a New Film from Ken Burns, To Air on PBS Nov. 18 and 19

LEONARDO da VINCI, a new, two-part, four-hour documentary directed by Ken Burns, Sarah Burns, and David McMahon will air Nov. 18 and 19, at 8-10 p.m. ET (check local listings) on PBS, PBS.org, and the PBS App.
The film, which explores the life and work of the 15th-century polymath Leonardo da Vinci, is Burns’s first non-American subject. It also marks a significant change in the team’s filmmaking style, which includes using split screens with images, video, and sound from different periods to further contextualize Leonardo’s art and scientific explorations. LEONARDO da VINCI looks at how the artist influenced and inspired future generations, and it finds — in his soaring imagination and profound intellect — the foundation for a conversation we are still having today: what is our relationship with nature and what does it mean to be human.
The musician and composer Caroline Shaw recorded original music for the film performed by Attacca Quartet, Sō Percussion and Roomful of Teeth.
The voice of Leonardo is read by the Italian actor Adriano Giannini.
Keith David serves as the film’s narrator.
Part One is titled “The Disciple of Experience,” and Part Two is titled “Painter-God.”
The broadcast of LEONARDO da VINCI will be accompanied by educational materials for middle and high school classrooms, highlighting recent research and perspectives. The materials will be available at the Ken Burns in the Classroom hub on PBS LearningMedia.
LEONARDO da VINCI will be available to stream on all station-branded PBS platforms including PBS.org and the PBS App, available on iOS, Android, Roku streaming devices, Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, Samsung Smart TV, Chromecast and VIZIO. The series will also be available to stream on PBS Passport and the “PBS Documentaries Prime Video Channel.” PBS station members can view the documentary via PBS Passport as part of a full collection of Ken Burns films. For more information about PBS Passport, visit the PBS Passport FAQ website. LEONARDO da VINCI will be distributed internationally by PBS International.
LEONARDO da VINCI is a production of Florentine Films and WETA Washington, D.C.
Directed by Ken Burns, Sarah Burns and David McMahon. Written by David McMahon and Sarah Burns. Produced by Sarah Burns, David McMahon, Ken Burns and Tim McAleer. Edited by K.A. Miille and Woody Richman. Cinematography by Buddy Squires. The executive in charge for WETA is John F. Wilson. Executive producer is Ken Burns.

PBS Shines Spotlight on Vital Ocean-Focused Programming Complementing the Ongoing Environmental and Climate Programming Initiative

In a multiyear effort to ignite hope and inspire action, PBS explores a spectrum of ocean and fresh water-related issues through a mix of new and returning series showcasing titles such as HOPE IN THE WATER, NATURE: PATRICK AND THE WHALE, DYNAMIC PLANET, INDEPENDENT LENS: ONE WITH THE WHALE, CHANGING PLANET, SEA CHANGE, and WEATHERED. In a critical year for ocean science and health, PBS is intensifying its commitment, complementing the multiyear climate initiative, and marking a crucial step towards enhancing awareness and tackling the urgent challenges our oceans face.
The initiative kicks off this month with a special multiplatform slate of programs, including:
- NATURE: PATRICK AND THE WHALE is an inspiring and engaging tale of cameraman, Patrick Dykstra, and a sperm whale he named “Delores.” For years, Patrick has dedicated his life to traveling the globe following and diving with whales. He has learned how whales see and hear, how they perceive other creatures in the water, and how they behave at close quarters. His calm and delicate behavior around whales allows him to consistently get closer than anyone else. We follow Patrick to the Caribbean where he meets a very special whale who allows him to enter her realm. Using extraordinary underwater footage, Patrick explores the fascinating world of the sperm whale and shines a light on its intelligence, complexity, and emotions. Premiering Wednesday, Feb. 21 at 8 p.m. ET on PBS, PBS.org, and the PBS app.
- CHANGING PLANET: CORAL SPECIAL will embark on the third year of this 7-year project examining the issues facing the planet’s most threatened ecosystems. Dr. M. Sanjayan visits the Maldives to take an in-depth look at coral reefs and the urgent efforts to help them survive climate change. Globally, coral reefs are at a crisis point – warming seas cause corals to bleach and without action nearly all reefs could die off in the next few decades. There's a race against time to help damaged reefs recover. Premiering Wednesday, April 24 at 8 p.m. ET on PBS, PBS.org and the PBS app.
- INDEPENDENT LENS: ONE WITH THE WHALE explores why hunting whales is a matter of life or death for the residents of St. Lawrence. When a shy Alaska Native teen becomes the youngest person ever to harpoon a whale for his village, his family is blindsided by thousands of keyboard activists brutally attacking him online—without full perspective on the importance of the hunt to his community's well-being. Premieres Tuesday, April 23 at 10 p.m. ET on PBS, PBS.org and the PBS app. The program will also be available on the PBS YouTube channel beginning on Earth Day, Monday, April 22.
- HOPE IN THE WATER travels the globe to discover the creative solutions and breakthrough blue food technologies that could not only feed us but help save our threatened seas and fresh waterways. The series highlights the stories of amazing innovators, aquafarmers, and fishers who are working toward a sustainable future for the planet. This three-part series premieres Wednesday, June 19 at 9 p.m. ET on PBS, PBS.org, and the PBS app.
- DYNAMIC PLANET, an epic new series, filmed over three years, travels to the extremes on all seven continents to meet an extraordinary group of people and animals living and working on the front line of climate change. They reveal how science, nature and tradition can prepare us for the future. Premiering June 2024 on PBS, PBS.org, and the PBS app.
- SEA CHANGE, a special presentation of NOVA, is a story about a sea within the sea, a body of water that is warming 99% faster than the global ocean. What happens here, for the animals in the water, for the jobs dependent upon them, and for the millions of people along its shores, is likely to happen worldwide. We are at a crossroads for the future of the Gulf – and our oceans. Does it retain enough of its biodiversity and regenerative strength to weather the human-induced storm? Is the sheer beauty of the place and spectacular range of its creatures enough to wake us to the stakes? A fascinating tale about a regional location with profound global implications, this three-part prime time documentary series premieres July 24 at 9 p.m. ET on PBS, the PBS app, and the NOVA YouTube channel. A digital series produced by indigenous filmmakers in collaboration with Vision Maker Media and NOVA accompanies SEA CHANGE.
- WEATHERED, based on the hit YouTube series on PBS Terra, is evolving into a six-episode longform series that uses weather and natural disasters to draw viewers into gripping stories about climate science. This first season features a range of ocean-related climate stories, from the coral reef collapse in Florida to melting ice caps to the connection between ocean currents and sea level rise. The series will reveal how we can prepare for these extremes as well as the groundbreaking solutions scientists and everyday people are exploring to make these weather events less likely in the future. Premiering August 2024 on the PBS App and YouTube.
More titles to be announced later.
Educational resources drawing on content from these programs will be available through PBS LearningMedia. Available for free to all educators pre-K through 12th grade, PBS LearningMedia offers classroom-ready content aligned to state and national standards, compatible with the tools teachers use most, such as Google Classroom, and contextualized with supporting materials.

NOVA Announces 50th Anniversary Activities, a Celebration of Half a Century of Storytelling Around Scientific Progress

Nearly 50 years ago, the PBS series NOVA filled a gap in broadcast television — delivering entertaining and informative science stories to audiences at a time when there were very few science shows on the air. Produced by GBH and branded as “science adventures for curious grown-ups,” it debuted on March 3, 1974, setting a new standard for science documentary storytelling and becoming one of PBS’s flagship series. The series looked back on nearly half a century of groundbreaking science and human curiosity and announced a celebration featuring an awe-inspiring lineup of new specials, content, and initiatives through the end of 2024.
Throughout 2024, NOVA will roll out a series of digital initiatives, content, education and outreach activities, and a robust new slate of programming to celebrate its 50th anniversary. All of these plans will center around key scientific advancements of the past five decades as well as discoveries and issues that are central to our present and future — including artificial intelligence, our relationship to data, the most groundbreaking moments in the history of physics, and the 2024 total solar eclipse.
Winter/Spring 2024 Programming Highlights Include:
- “HUNT FOR THE OLDEST DNA” Premieres Wednesday, Feb.21 at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT on PBS – For decades, scientists have tried to unlock the secrets of ancient DNA. But life’s genetic blueprint is incredibly fragile, and researchers have struggled to find DNA in fossils that could survive millions of years. Then, one maverick scientist had the controversial idea to look for DNA not in fossils or frozen ancient tissue – but in dirt. Join the hunt as scientists decipher the oldest DNA ever found, and reveal for the first time the genes of long-extinct creatures that once thrived in a warm, lush Arctic.
- “A.I. REVOLUTION” Premieres Wednesday, March 27 at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT on PBS – Can we harness the power of artificial intelligence to solve the world’s most challenging problems without creating an uncontrollable force that ultimately destroys us? ChatGPT and other new A.I. tools can now answer complex questions, write essays, and generate realistic-looking images in a matter of seconds. They can even pass a lawyer’s bar exam. Should we celebrate? Or worry? Or both? Correspondent Miles O’Brien investigates how researchers are trying to transform the world using A.I., hunting for big solutions in fields from medicine to climate change.
- “GREAT AMERICAN ECLIPSE” Premieres Wednesday, April 3 at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT on PBS – Explore the spectacular cosmic phenomenon of a total solar eclipse. In April 2024, the Moon’s shadow is sweeping from Texas to Maine, as the contiguous U.S. witnesses its last total solar eclipse until 2044. This extraordinary astronomical event will plunge locations in the path of totality into darkness for more than four minutes – nearly twice as long as the last American eclipse in 2017. Learn how to watch an eclipse safely and follow scientists as they work to unlock secrets of our Sun – from why its atmosphere is hundreds of times hotter than its surface, to what causes solar storms and how we might one day predict them.
- “SECRETS IN YOUR DATA” Premieres Wednesday, May 15 at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT on PBS – Whether you’re on social media or surfing the web, you’re sharing more personal data than you realize. That can pose a risk to your privacy–even your safety. But at the same time, big data sets could lead to huge advances in health, transportation, climate science, and more. Host Alok Patel leads a quest to understand what happens to all the data we’re shedding and explores the latest efforts to maximize benefits–without compromising personal privacy.
- “DECODING THE UNIVERSE: COSMOS” Premieres Wednesday, May 22 at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT on PBS – How big is the universe? If it began with the Big Bang, will it also have an end? Is there life beyond our planet? Questions like these inspired the launch of Voyager I in 1977 and have driven innovative space research and exploration ever since. Trace the ground-breaking discoveries that have transformed our picture of the universe, from an age when we knew of no planets beyond our solar system, to today, when we have evidence of thousands and estimate trillions more. And follow the teams trying to solve two of the biggest mysteries in cosmology today: What are dark matter and dark energy?
Fall 2024 programming will be announced in the upcoming months and will include a three-part series on building our world — featuring some of the underlying principles and most innovative projects in engineering — and a five-part sequel to the acclaimed 2019 series “The Planets,” a BBC Studios Production with NOVA and GBH. More information about NOVA’s 50th anniversary celebration will be made available at pbs.org/nova and by following the hashtag #NOVA50.
NOVA airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT on PBS and is available for streaming at pbs.org/nova, NOVA on YouTube, and the PBS App, available on iOS, Android, Roku streaming devices, Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, Samsung Smart TV, Chromecast, and VIZIO, as well as on the PBS Documentaries Prime Video Channel. PBS station members can view many series, documentaries and specials via PBS Passport. For more information about PBS Passport, visit the PBS Passport FAQ website.
Executive Producers for NOVA are Julia Cort and Chris Schmidt. NOVA is a production of GBH.

PBS Premieres Powerful, Revisionist History of Popular 1970s Music in DISCO: SOUNDTRACK OF A REVOLUTION, a Three-Part Docuseries in Summer 2024

PBS tackles the surprising and overlooked history of disco – the preeminent popular music of the 1970s – in a three-part series, DISCO: SOUNDTRACK OF A REVOLUTION. The docuseries captures the story of disco: its rise, its fall, and its legacy. From the basement bars of ‘70s New York City to the peak of the global charts, along with iconic tracks and remarkable footage, DISCO: SOUNDTRACK OF A REVOLUTION offers a powerful, revisionist history of the disco age. Told by the original musicians, promoters, and innovators – as well as modern-day musical icons – this BBC Studios Production will premiere Tuesday, June 18 on PBS (check local listings), PBS.org, and the PBS App.
A brief overview of the three-part docuseries is as follows:
- Episode 1: “Rock the Boat” – Premieres: Tuesday, June 18 – The opening episode of the series looks at the roots of disco – how it emerged from a basic desire for inclusion, visibility, and freedom among persecuted Black, gay, and minority ethnic communities of New York City. It tells the remarkable story of how a global phenomenon began in the loft apartments and basement bars of New York City, where a new generation of DJs and musicians, like David Mancuso, Nicky Siano, Francis Grasso, and Earl Young (The Trammps), pioneered a distinct sound and a new way of spinning records.
- Episode 2: “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now” – Premieres: Tuesday, June 25 – Set against the backdrop of Black power and sexual liberation, the second episode takes viewers to the high watermark of disco in the mid ’70s. As disco conquers the mainstream, it turns Black women and gay men into superstars and icons. It is a world where the drag queen Sylvester was king, and Black women found a powerful new voice – one that fused Black Power with a call for sexual freedom. It was the birth of the “disco diva” from Gloria Gaynor and Candi Staton to Donna Summer and Thelma Houston. However, mainstream success by The Bee Gees’ soundtrack album “Saturday Night Fever,” The Rolling Stones’ “Miss You,” Rod Stewart’s “Da Ya Think I’m Sexy,” and Studio 54 took disco further and further from its roots of inclusivity and freedom, as straight, white men started to embrace and repackage the sound.
- Episode 3: “Stayin’ Alive” – Premieres: Tuesday, July 2 – The final episode documents the wellspring of resentment from white, straight, male-dominated, rock-loving middle Americans, as they targeted disco for its hedonism, femininity, and queerness. A vocal “Disco Sucks” movement began to gain momentum, culminating in the “Disco Demolition Derby” at Comiskey Park Stadium in Chicago, where organizers destroyed thousands of disco records in front of a baying audience of baseball fans. In addition, the hedonism and sexual liberation embodied by disco found itself stopped in its tracks by the AIDS crisis. Pushed out of the mainstream, the pioneers of disco retreated and regrouped. Cult disco DJ Frankie Knuckles left New York for Chicago, where he remixed disco breaks with R&B to produce a new genre of dance music – house. He and other disco pioneers kept disco alive as it evolved into world electronic dance music.
DISCO: SOUNDTRACK OF A REVOLUTION features some of disco’s originators, musicians, promoters, and innovators, as well as modern-day musical icons, such as: Vince Aletti, Steve Ashkinazy, Bill Bernstein, Joyce Bogart Trabulus, Jocelyn Brown, Carmen D’Alessio, David Depino, Lisa Farrington, Nona Hendryx, Thelma Houston, Marshall Jefferson, Francois Kevorkian, Tina Magennis, Ana Matronic, George McCrae, David Morales, Tom Moulton, Colleen Murphy, John Parikhal, Kim Petras, Mark Riley, Allen Roskoff, Alex Rosner, Michelle Saunders, Jake Shears, Nicky Siano, Candi Staton, Jeanie Tracy, Barry Walters, Dexter Wansel, Anita Ward, Jessie Ware, Sharon White, Victor Willis, Earl Young, Jamie Principle, Robert Williams, Ron Trent, DJ Hollywood, Honey Dijon, and MNEK.
DISCO: SOUNDTRACK OF A REVOLUTION is a BBC Studios Production for PBS and BBC. The docuseries is produced and directed by Louise Lockwood and Shianne Brown. Catherine Abbott serves as series producer, Flora Stewart as story producer, and Becky Marshall as producer. The executive producing team is Alexander Leith as executive producer and Anna Sadowy as edit executive producer. Tom Hayward is the series director of photography and Grace Chapman is the series director. The commissioning editor for the BBC is Rachel Davies. Jonathan Rothery serves as head of popular music, TV/commissioning editor, factual, alongside Rachel Davies as commissioner.

Broadway’s “Purlie Victorious” Starring Tony Winner Leslie Odom, Jr. Joins GREAT PERFORMANCES “Broadway’s Best” Lineup Premiering May 24 on PBS

Following a successful run on Broadway, the Emmy-winning performing arts series GREAT PERFORMANCES has announced the addition of “Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch” to its Broadway’s Best lineup in May. Starring Tony Award winner Leslie Odom, Jr., GREAT PERFORMANCES “Purlie Victorious” premieres Friday, May 24 at 9 p.m. on PBS (check local listings), on pbs.org/gperf, and the PBS App.
The comedic play tells the story of a Black preacher’s scheme to reclaim his inheritance and win back his church from a plantation owner. Written by Kennedy Center honoree Ossie Davis with direction by Tony Award winner Kenny Leon (“A Raisin in the Sun”), this first Broadway revival was recorded live at the Music Box Theatre on January 24-26, 2024. Purlie Victorious made its original debut on Broadway in 1961 and starred Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Alan Alda, Godfrey Cambridge, Sorrell Booke and Beah Richards.
With Leslie Odom, Jr. in the title role, the cast also features Billy Eugene Jones (Gitlow Judson), Jay O. Sanders (Ol’ Cap’n Cotchipee), Heather Alicia Simms (Missy Judson), Vanessa Bell Calloway (Idella Landy), Noah Robbins (Charlie Cotchipee), Noah Pyzik (The Deputy), Bill Timoney (The Sheriff) and Kara Young (Lutiebelle Gussie Mae Jenkins).
Purlie Victorious mirrors playwright Ossie Davis’ personal journey, growing up in racially segregated Georgia, to challenge oppressive white authority in the South and beyond. Using his art to both entertain and educate, some of the atrocities addressed in the play, such as the harsh use of racial slurs and references to attacks like a young man getting his head dipped in a bucket of syrup, are pulled directly from Davis’ own upbringing.
Great Performances: Purlie Victorious joins Great Performances’ Broadway’s Best May lineup which also includes Great Performances: Hamlet, Great Performances: Audra McDonald at the London Palladium and Great Performances: Rodgers & Hammerstein 80th Anniversary.
For more than 50 years on PBS, Great Performances has provided an unparalleled showcase for all genres of the performing arts, serving as America’s most prestigious and enduring broadcaster of cultural programming. Showcasing a diverse range of artists from around the world, the series has earned 67 Emmy Awards and six Peabody Awards. The Great Performances website hosts exclusive videos, interviews, photos, full episodes and more. The series is produced by The WNET Group. Great Performances is available for streaming concurrent with broadcast on PBS.org and the PBS App, available on iOS, Android, Roku streaming devices, Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, Samsung Smart TV, Chromecast and VIZIO.
A production of The WNET Group, Great Performances: Purlie Victorious is produced by Leslie Odom, Jr., Mitch Owgang and Stephanie Dawson, and directed for television by David Horn. For Great Performances, Bill O’Donnell is series producer and David Horn is executive producer.
Series funding for Great Performances is provided by The Joseph & Robert Cornell Memorial Foundation, the Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Foundation, the LuEsther T. Mertz Charitable Trust, Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III, the Abra Prentice Foundation, Jody and John Arnhold, The Starr Foundation, The Philip and Janice Levin Foundation, the Kate W. Cassidy Foundation, the Thea Petschek Iervolino Foundation, Seton J. Melvin, the Estate of Worthington Mayo-Smith, the Jack Lawrence Trust, Ellen and James S. Marcus, Leni and Peter May and the Blanche and Hayward Cirker Charitable Trust.

PBS KIDS Launches Civics Content Initiative in 2024

Beginning this year, PBS KIDS is rolling out a full slate of civics-themed content. The effort will span across a range of both new and existing series aimed at encouraging viewers to get involved in their communities and learn more about what’s happening around them. The programming, which will expand on PBS KIDS’s Social Studies learning goals, will feature a second season of hit shorts series, CITY ISLAND, and two new music video series, CITY ISLAND SINGS and TOGETHER WE CAN (w.t), created with Sesame Workshop. PBS KIDS is also in development with TIME Studios on a live-action shorts series supporting civic engagement through media literacy.
PBS KIDS’ civics-focused content integrates foundational Social Studies concepts to support the core idea that everyone, including children, can be active and contributing members of their home, school, and broader communities. When they work together as a member of a group, conduct themselves responsibly, and develop conflict resolution skills, children begin to explore ideas at the heart of government and the democratic process. This content, including CITY ISLAND SINGS, CITY ISLAND Season 2, TOGETHER WE CAN (w.t.), and ROSIE’S RULES were made possible with funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. CPB and PBS KIDS are committed to helping all kids become informed citizens and active members of their communities.
The growing world of CITY ISLAND will include a new suite of games that will enable young players to become CITY ISLAND citizens, along with a new music video spin-off series, CITY ISLAND SINGS, which encompasses 10 music videos that will debut across streaming platforms every Wednesday and Friday beginning May 29. Season 2 of the series, which will include 20 episodes that will roll out every Friday, is set to premiere on July 5 and builds on the first season’s focus on civic engagement, expanding the curricular focus to media literacy, covering topics such as news media, fact-based reporting, advertisements, and the flow of information on the internet.
CITY ISLAND, from creator Aaron Augenblick and Future Brain Media, is a series of animated shorts for early elementary school-aged children set in a thriving metropolis and living city, where every object is a character. It includes local organizations, government institutions, and a diverse citizenry (like main character Watt, a lightbulb, and his friend Windy, a kite), while highlighting topics like cooperation, conflict resolution, and city planning. The series aims to help foster young viewers’ understanding of how cities and communities work.
New music-focused series TOGETHER WE CAN (w.t.), created and produced by Sesame Workshop, consists of 20 live-action music videos that cover civics topics such as what it means to be a member of a community, the importance of rules and rights, and broader civics engagement concepts from voting and symbols of democracy to our Constitution. TOGETHER WE CAN, for children 4-8, will premiere the first ten episodes on July 3, with the remaining ten rolling out on August 7.
New content, including new episodes of ROSIE’S RULES, will join PBS KIDS’ existing civics-oriented offerings, like YOU, ME & COMMUNITY, a series of animated shorts about broader civics themes with catchy songs, which cover roles and responsibilities in communities, different kinds of families, creating positive change in your community, and more. In addition, slated for October is a playlist of civics-focused episodes from hit PBS KIDS series such as ARTHUR, ROSIE’S RULES, DANIEL TIGER’S NEIGHBORHOOD, MOLLY OF DENALI, ALMA’S WAY, PEG + CAT, and XAVIER RIDDLE AND THE SECRET MUSEUM.