Motown: The Musical on Broadway in 2013
Founded by Berry Gordy in 1959, Motown Records was the driving force behind discovering and promoting a host of music legends, including the Jackson 5, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross and The Supremes, the Miracles, Smokey Robinson, Marvin Gaye and many more. Now Berry Gordon is taking the magic to Broadway with Motown: The Musical, with previews beginning on March 11, 2013, and the show running from April 14 to June 22 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theater. The show will feature the music and rise to fame stories of many of the early Motown superstars and the role Gordy played in their success.
American stage actor Brandon Victor Dixon will be starring in the role of Berry Gordy. Nominated for a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for his role as Harpo in the Broadway production of The Color Purple, Dixon has played the role of Simba in the Chicago production of The Lion Kings and appeared in the Off-Broadway production of Rent as well as numerous other stage roles.
Having appeared on Broadway in a number of productions, including The Book of Mormon, Ragtime, 110 in the Shade, and The Threepenny Opera, Valisia Le Kae will be starring as Diana Ross in Motown: The Musical. Valisia has also toured the US with All Shook Up and Mamma Mia!, to mention just a few of her achievements.
Auditions for various roles in the musical are being held in Detroit, New York, Atlanta, Los Angeles and Chicago. Among the roles to be filled are an actor-singer to play the childhood roles of Michael Jackson and Stevie Wonder, as well as two males in their twenties to play the roles of Smokey Robinson and Marvin Gaye. Other roles include female backing singers and a male bass singer.
Born in Detroit, Michigan, on November 28, 1929, Berry Gordy started his career in the music world by writing a number of songs that were recorded by Jackie Wilson. He discovered The Miracles in 1957 and turned his attention to producing, slowly building a portfolio of successful artists and creatinig R&B label Tamla Records. The rest – as they say – is history, and in 2013 slices of that fascinating and entertaining history will be served up for audiences to enjoy in Motown: The Musical.
