Even as he was fervently writing and arranging music for the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square’s upcoming Christmas concert, music director Mack Wilberg couldn’t help but take a few minutes out of his busy schedule to reflect on last year’s production, which, in a nutshell, he considers to be “a miracle.”

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A Christmas ‘miracle’

During a recent press conference with reporters, Wilberg recalled how the choir wasn’t given the go-ahead to move forward with its annual Christmas concert — the choir’s largest undertaking each year — until the second week of October 2021 because of the pandemic. Usually, at that point in the year, the Christmas program has already been in the works for several months.

So the choir quickly got to work, seeing if it could secure guest artists for a program that over the years has welcomed notable artists like the late Angela Lansbury, Audra McDonald, Kristin Chenoweth and Renee Fleming. The choir started at the top of its list, with two people who have long been on the radar: Broadway star Megan Hilty, and actor Neal McDonough, who has starred in a slew of films and TV shows, including “Captain America: The First Avenger,” “Suits” and “Band of Brothers.”

“Luckily, those names that we had at the top were not only available, but more importantly, willing to do it,” Wilberg said.

Neal McDonough serves as narrator during a taping for the “Christmas With the Tabernacle Choir” television special.
Neal McDonough serves as emcee during a taping for the “Christmas With the Tabernacle Choir” television special at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, Dec. 17, 2021. | Spenser Heaps, Deseret News

With Hilty and McDonough on board, the choir then got to work putting the massive production together. The 500 volunteers involved in the Christmas program were under strict COVID-19 precautions at the time, Wilberg said, including getting tested ahead of every single rehearsal and performance. They were able to pull it off, performing for a substantially reduced live audience of fewer than 4,000 each night, the Deseret News reported.

Wilberg’s efforts to make that concert come to life led McDonough to compare the music director to Dick Winters, the lead character and platoon leader in “Band of Brothers.”

“Mack is one of those guys who leads from the front,” McDonough said. “He’s one of those guys who says, ‘Follow me. I’m going to make sure that everything is going to go right because I’ve worked so hard to make it come true,’ and Mack, we can’t thank you enough for that.”

Two weeks after the taping of that concert, the choir got shut down again for another two months.

“This concert really was a miracle,” Wilberg said.

Now, the Tabernacle Choir’s 2021 Christmas concert is premiering on television — first on PBS starting Dec. 13, and then on BYUtv beginning Dec. 18.

“What people will see really will be the efforts of so many under rather difficult circumstances,” Wilberg said. “It could not have been a better outcome.”

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Both Hilty and McDonough didn’t even hesitate when they were approached about participating in the annual Christmas concert.

“It was an immediate ‘absolutely,’” Hilty said, noting how she had come to miss performing for live audiences during the pandemic. “This was a singer’s dream to get to sing with this legendary choir. It was the easiest answer I could give.”

Even after 40 years in the music industry, Hilty, whose Broadway credits include “Wicked” and “9 to 5,” said she still has a hard time describing the “transcendent” power of music.

Mack Wilberg, music director of the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square, center, thanks special guests Neal McDonough, left, and Megan Hilty, right, at the conclusion of a taping for the “Christmas With the Tabernacle Choir” television special at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, Dec. 17, 2021. | Spenser Heaps, Deseret News

“You can’t really put into words what it feels like to step out onto (the Conference Center) stage. It is enormous, and I think one of the greatest parts of it is standing right next to that glorious choir, and almost like bathing in the sound,” said Hilty, who called singing “Angels From the Realms of Glory” a highlight of her “entire career.” “It is an experience unlike any other I’ve ever had. ... Every single moment of this experience was profoundly special.”

McDonough, who said he read a large portion of the Book of Mormon back when he starred in the Utah-filmed “Forever Strong” in 2008, shared how he has long felt a kinship with the Latter-day Saint faith and its emphasis on families. He called it an “honor” to be able “to bridge the Irish Catholic faith and the Mormon faith together” during the Christmas program, which drew heavily on McDonough’s and Hilty’s shared Irish heritage.

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“That message that we are all in it together and we all should be loving and understanding each other the best that we can because we’re all God’s children, no matter what we believe in,” McDonough said. “That to me was was the most magical part. ... I will never forget it.

“And knowing that everyone here was volunteering their time to put on the show to spread the word of God throughout the whole world, ... it was just one of the most powerful feelings I’ve ever had,” he continued. “I think that we worry so much about the small things in life that we forget about the bigger picture of what He has given to us, and to be able to celebrate that onstage with the most amazing talented people that I’ve been around was just for me, what a highlight in my life. I’m so proud of it. I’m so happy and proud of it.”

The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square, Bells at Temple Square and the Gabriel Trumpet Ensemble perform at the Conference Center.
The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square, Bells at Temple Square and the Gabriel Trumpet Ensemble perform during a taping for the “Christmas With the Tabernacle Choir” television special at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, Dec. 17, 2021. Special guests Megan Hilty and Neal McDonough joined the groups, with music director Mack Wilberg conducting. | Spenser Heaps, Deseret News

How to watch 2021 Tabernacle Choir Christmas concert

Viewers have a few ways to watch the 2021 Tabernacle Choir Christmas concert.

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The production will premiere Dec. 13 at 8 p.m. EST on PBS, PBS.org and the PBS Video app, but viewers are encouraged to check their local listings — in Utah, the premiere time is 7 p.m. MST.

The concert featuring Hilty and McDonough will also air Sunday, Dec. 18, at 8 p.m. EST — 6 p.m. MST — on BYUtv, BYUtv.org and the BYUtv app, according to a news release. Both BYUtv and PBS will have multiple airings of the program during the holiday season.

The program will also be available at BYUtv.org and on the BYUtv app after its BYUtv premiere on Dec. 18.

This year’s Christmas concert, which runs Dec. 15 through Dec. 17 at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City, features Broadway and Disney star Lea Salonga and Sir David Suchet, who is well known for his portrayal of Hercule Poirot.

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