Shereen Ahmed, Kate Rockwell and More Join THE EYES OF THE WORLD D-Day Anniversary Concert

A large-scale multimedia production commemorating the final year of World War II in Europe will be performed at the Orpheum Theater in New Orleans on Friday, June 6 at 7:30 p.m., marking both the 81st anniversary of D-Day and the 25th anniversary of The National WWII Museum.

Titled The Eyes of the World: From D-Day to VE Day, the one-night-only performance combines live narration, historic footage, Broadway vocalists, and a full symphonic score performed by the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Ian Weinberger, music director of Hamilton on Broadway.

Created and narrated by historian John Monsky, the show uses archival film, photography, and firsthand accounts to trace the final 11 months of the war in Europe—from the Allied landings in Normandy to the liberation of Paris and the fall of Berlin. Monsky draws from the writings and experiences of figures such as Ernest Hemingway, Robert Capa, Lee Miller, and a young American soldier named Jerry, whose paths intersect on and off the battlefield.

The performance includes appearances by Broadway actors Shereen Ahmed, John Clay III, Kate Rockwell, and Nicholas Rodriguez, performing period songs by Edith Piaf, Irving Berlin, and Aaron Copland, among others.

Artifacts such as battlefield flags, personal letters, and rarely seen photos are woven into the presentation, adding visual context to the stories of soldiers, journalists, and overlooked groups such as the 761st Tank Battalion and the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion—two segregated African American units that served with distinction.

The production also highlights New Orleans’ wartime role, including its shipbuilding legacy and vulnerability to German U-boat attacks during the early 1940s.

“New Orleans is where the U.S. built the boats that helped win the war, and it’s home to the institution that preserves that legacy,” said Monsky. “Bringing The Eyes of the World to this city, as the Museum celebrates 25 years, is both an honor and a homecoming.”

The event is presented by The National WWII Museum and the Priddy Family Foundation, and follows sold-out performances at Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, and Boston’s Symphony Hall.

More information about the performance can be found at www.americanhistoryunbound.com and www.nationalww2museum.org.