imagine... - Season 22
Season 22
Episodes
Theatre of War
From rehearsal room to triumphant performance, Imagine... follows the extraordinary theatrical production of The Two Worlds of Charlie F. Professional front-line soldiers, all of whom have sustained injuryranging from amputation to post-traumatic stress, join forces with a professional theatre company to help write, rehearse and perform a play based on their experiences of war in the killing fields of Afghanistan. What happened when they swapped the theatre of war for the London stage?
Paul Simon's Graceland - Under African Skies
Paul Simon's Graceland album is one of his greatest achievements - a brilliant fusion of African rhythms and western pop which became a global phenomenon. It also proved hugely controversial, as Simon broke the UN-backed cultural boycott of a country still under the grip of apartheid.
Joe Berlinger's film captures Simon's return to South Africa 25 years on and contrasts the value of individual artistic expression versus collective political action as instruments of change. Did Paul Simon's unique collaboration with South Africa's township musicians set back the clock of South African liberation or drive it forward?
Just One Falsetto
From the Beach Boys to Queen and Jeff Buckley, falsetto singing has a long and distinguished presence in all types of music, one that continues to fascinate and enthral audiences. Alan Yentob delves into the world of falsetto singing, the high-pitched vocal range sung by men that comes closer to the female voice, and discovers why falsetto can express emotions that could not otherwise be achieved. With contributors including Frankie Valli, Brian May, Philip Bailey from Earth, Wind and Fire and Harrow School Chapel Choir, imagine... asks why men are compelled to sing in such a voice.
Glasgow: The Grit and the Glamour
imagine... explores the story of a group of artists and curators who stormed the international art world and turned their home city of Glasgow into a global capital for contemporary art. Amongst the artistsAlan Yentob encounters are 2011 Turner Prize-winner Martin Boyce, as well as previous winners Douglas Gordon, Simon Starling and Richard Wright, to tell the story of a city now as famed for its contemporary art as it was for its shipbuilding.
Dancing with Titian
As three of Titian's greatest masterpieces are shown together for the first time at the National Gallery, imagine... goes behind the scenes of a unique collaboration with the Royal Ballet.
Alan Yentob meets the all-star creative team who are transforming mythological paintings of the goddess Diana into contemporary dance - among them Turner Prize winning artists Chris Ofili and Mark Wallinger, choreographers Wayne McGregor and Christopher Wheeldon, and composer Nico Muhly.
Alan also explores why Titian's paintings - and his source material, Ovid's Metamorphoses - have continued to inspire so many artists to this day; and along the way, he encounters Seamus Heaney... and a dancing robot.
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When Calls the Heart is inspired by Janette Oke's bestselling book series about the Canadian West, the series tells the captivating story of Elizabeth Thatcher, a young teacher accustomed to her high society life, who receives her first classroom assignment in Coal Valley, a small coal mining town where life is simple, but often fraught with challenges. Upon arrival, Elizabeth befriends Abigail Stanton, a wife and mother whose husband, the foreman of the mine, along with a dozen other miners, has just been killed in an explosion. The newly widowed women find their faith is tested when they must go to work in the mines to keep a roof over their heads. Set against the wild canvas of a 19th century coal town, Elizabeth will have to learn the ways of the frontier if she wishes to thrive in the rural west on her own.
Wild Cards
Wild Cards follows the unlikely duo of a gruff, sardonic cop and a spirited, clever con woman. Ellis, a demoted detective, has unfortunately spent the last year on the maritime unit, while Max has been living a transient life elaborately scamming everyone she meets. But when Max gets arrested and ends up helping Ellis solve a local crime, the two are offered the opportunity to redeem themselves, with Ellis going back to detective and Max staying out of jail. The catch? They have to work together, with each using their unique skills to solve crimes. For Ellis, that means hard-boiled shoe leather police work; for Max, it means accents, schemes and generally befriending everyone in sight, while driving Ellis absolutely nuts. Against the backdrop of beautiful Vancouver — with all its unique, charming, and even contradictory neighbourhoods and subcultures — the two will have to learn what it means to trust another person and maybe actually become partners.
