Tony winners Billy Porter (Kinky Boots, Pose) and Cynthia Erivo (The Color Purple, Harriet), pianist Jamie Cullum, and rapper and actor Utkarsh Ambudkar (Freestyle Love Supreme) star in the May 29 episode of James and The Giant Peach with Taika and Friends. Watch the artists have a bit of fun before they start recording the latest episode in the video above.
Porter, who stars as Earthworm, with Erivo as Miss Ladybird, Cullum as Miss Spider, and Ambudkar as Centipede are joined by famed cellist Yo-Yo Ma, who has helped re-imagine the scene in which the Old Green Grasshopper plays the violin using his legs, performing a specially composed cello piece.
The previously announced unabridged reading of the childhood favorite, released in 10 parts, began May 18 and has already featured Meryl Streep, Ryan Reynolds, and Benedict Cumberbatch. The series, narrated by Oscar-winning filmmaker Taika Waititi, can be viewed on the Roald Dahl YouTube channel.
The series aims to raise money for Partners In Health, a medical and social justice organization fighting COVID-19 and supporting public health systems in some of the most vulnerable communities around the world. Donations can be made by visiting PIH.org/GiantPeach.
