The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess, starring Audra McDonald as Bess, Norm Lewis as Porgy, and David Alan Grier as Sporting Life, begins in previews of its Broadway run at the Richard Rodgers Theatre in New York City on Saturday. Diane Paulus directs the new production of this seminal American opera, written by George Gershwin, DuBose and Dorothy Heyward, and Ira Gershwin and adapted by Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Suzan-Lori Parks and two-time Obie winner Diedre Murray. The official Opening Night is January 12.

"Ms. McDonald is Bess (or to use the hyperbolic speech of movie ads, 'Audra McDonald Is Bess')," exclaimed New York Times theater critic Ben Brantley during the show's run at the A.R.T. in Cambridge, Massachusetts, "and she can claim rights to full possession of her role, the kind of ownership that transforms a classic character forever ... Ms. McDonald’s performance is as complete and complex a work of musical portraiture as any I’ve seen in years, fulfilling the best intentions of Ms. Paulus and Ms. Parks." The Boston Globe's Don Aucoin wrote that "in Audra McDonald, this production boasts a Bess for the ages."

For more information and tickets, go to porgyandbessonbroadway.com.

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The Black Keys perform songs from their new album, El Camino, and discuss the album on the radio on World Cafe, hosted by David Dye and broadcast on NPR member stations across the United States. Tune in online at npr.org.

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Shawn Colvin is out West this week, and tonight she makes her only non-Californian stop of the week, at the Crescent Ballroom in Phoenix, Arizona. Colvin then returns to California for the remainder of the weekend, with shows at The Coach House in San Juan Capistrano on Saturday and at Belly Up in Solana Beach on Sunday.

Colvin's next set of shows will be in Northern California, where she'll have a three-show residency at Yoshi's in San Francisco in mid-January. Her latest Nonesuch album, Live, was recorded during a similar three-night run at Yoshi's back in 2008.

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Emmylou Harris stays close to home in Nashville to host her second annual Miracle on Music Row benefit concert and event to support Bonaparte's Retreat, the dog rescue and adoption center she established. The event takes place at O.liv Body Bar and begins at 10:30 AM. Also performing are The Civil Wars, Mike Farris, and frequent Harris collaborator Buddy Miller.

Saturday evening, Emmylou Harris heads to the historic Ryman Auditorium to perform in the Opry at the Ryman, joined once again by The Civil Wars, as well as The Grascals, Steve Wariner, Ella Mae Bowen, Keb 'Mo, and others. As noted earlier this week in the Nonesuch Journal, Harris will be honored by the Grand Ole Opry on the occasion of her 20th anniversary as an Opry member on January 21 at the Ryman. Her 20-year milestone will be celebrated with performances by the honoree, Vince Gill, Rodney Crowell, Shawn Colvin, making her Opry debut, and more.

Harris's latest Nonesuch album, Hard Bargain, has been nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Americana Album.

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Brad Mehldau makes his final scheduled appearance of 2011 at the Tbilisi State Conservatoire Grand Hall in Tbilisi, Georgia, on Sunday. The performance is a rare solo show for Mehldau, who has spent much of 2011 touring his Trio and with duo partner and label mate Joshua Redman.

Just after the New Year, Mehldau is scheduled for a six-night residency at the Village Vanguard in New York City with his Trio, and shortly after that, he'll set out for a brief Australian tour with Redman. 

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Sara Watkins and her brother Sean complete their tour in support of the Blind Boys of Alabama this weekend, performing in the group's Christmas show, Go Tell It on the Mountain. They perform at the Uptown Theater in Napa, California, on Saturday, followed by the group's last performance together, at the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, Nevada, on Sunday.

Watkins will soon be heading back into the studio to record the follow-up to her self-titled Nonesuch Records debut album. The album, which will be produced by Blake Mills, is due out sometime next year. Watkins will be taking fans inside the recording process as it happens when she posts audio clips from each day's session to her Facebook page and website.