MOTOWN The Musical Confirmed for Spring 2013 on Broadway - Based on Life of Berry Gordy

Producers Kevin McCollum, Doug Morris and Berry Gordy have announced that MOTOWN The Musical, based on the life of legendary Motown founder Berry Gordy, will open in the Spring of 2013 on Broadway at a Nederlander Theatre to be announced.

Directed by Charles Randolph-Wright, MOTOWN will feature a book by Berry Gordy and music and lyrics from the Motown legendary catalogue, featuring dozens of hit songs made famous by Smokey Robinson and The Miracles, Diana Ross and The Supremes, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, The Temptations, Michael Jackson and The Jackson Five and many more.

MOTOWN is a gripping story about the protégés and stars of a uniquely talented musical family who, under Berry Gordy’s guidance, began as “the Sound of Young America” and went on to become some of the greatest superstars of all time.

On January 12, 1959 a young African-American songwriter named Berry Gordy founded Tamla Records with a loan of $800 from his family, marking the birth of the “Motown Records Corporation.”

Berry Gordy’s legendary Motown Records made its mark not just on the music industry, but society at large, with a sound that has become one of the most significant musical accomplishments of all time. Motown communicated and brought together a racially divided country and segregated society, touching people of all ages and races around the world. No other music company in history has exerted such an enormous influence on both the style and substance of popular music and culture. With more than 180 No. 1 hit songs worldwide and counting, that influence is still being felt today.

Motown founder Berry Gordy said “Broadway is the pinnacle of live theater and provides a challenging and exciting opportunity to tell my story and share the magic of Motown. I’ve discovered that Motown and Broadway have a lot in common—a family of wonderfully talented, passionate, hard-working young people, fiercely competitive but also full of love and appreciation for the work, for each other and for the people in the audience. I can’t wait to feel that same Motown spirit come alive on stage every night.”

Producer Kevin McCollum (Rent, Avenue Q, In the Heights, The Drowsy Chaperone) said “Motown and Berry Gordy’s influence on music and our culture is unparalleled. I’m thrilled to have the chance to produce the story of the rise of Motown on Broadway.”

Producer Doug Morris, Chairman and CEO of SONY Music Entertainment, said “Berry Gordy is a true American pioneer. This is an amazing opportunity for everyone to experience the Motown phenomenon through the eyes of the man who lived it, and to hear some of the greatest pop songs of all time on a Broadway stage.”

Casting, additional creative team, dates and theatre will be announced shortly.

www.MotownTheMusical.com