Dionne Warwick, Legendary Multi-Grammy Winner, and Damon Elliott, Manager-Producer Son, Join “HITS! The Musical” as Co-Producers
50-plus city tour launches in February 2023 with stops from coast-to-coast Tickets and tour dates available at www.thehitstour.com
Style Magazine Newswire | 1/23/2023, 4:47 p.m.
“HITS the Musical” today announced that Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and six-time Grammy winning legend Dionne Warwick and Damon Elliott, her Manager-Producer son, are joining the production team as Co-Producers.
“HITS! The Musical” is an unforgettable production of non-stop, foot-tapping fun and excitement for music lovers young and old. Ranging in age from 10 to 22, the show will take audiences on a musical journey, performing medleys of 80 of America’s most iconic songs—including such well-known classics as “Hero,” “Signed, Sealed, Delivered,” “I Will Always Love You,” “Singing in The Rain” and more.
“The talent of these budding young superstars was so impressive that I just had to be a part of this extraordinary musical,” says Warwick. “I’m thrilled that this amazing cast will have the opportunity to perform on a national stage and showcase their singing and dancing talents while bringing everyone’s favorite songs to life.”
With her instantly recognizable voice and memorable songs, Warwick has been an icon of American pop music for more than 50 years and ranks #74 on the Billboard Hot 100’s “Greatest Artists of All Time.” An established international musical star, she is one of the most charted vocalists of all time. Warwick has more than 56 hit singles—12 in the top ten—and has sold more than 100 million records worldwide. In addition to her Grammy Awards, Warwick is the recipient of numerous other prestigious awards, including induction into the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the Grammy Hall of Fame, the R&B Music Hall of Fame and the Apollo Theater Walk of Fame. Three of her songs (“Walk on By,” “Alfie” and “Don’t Make Me Over”) have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
Today, Warwick is still going strong. She will be performing at select locations in North America during 2023, including the star-studded MusiCares dinner on February 3 honoring Berry Gordy and Smokey Robinson. She will also attend the 65th GRAMMY Awards which will be held February 5.
Recently, she recorded “Peace Like A River,” a duet with Dolly Parton, who also wrote the song, which will be released in late February. She was also the subject of documentary feature “Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over,” which will air on CNN on February 4 at 9:00 p.m. EST/6:00 p.m. PST and then will begin streaming on HBO Max. Additionally, her frequent tweets have earned her the title “Queen of Twitter” for her frank interactions with her numerous followers including many celebrities.
That her career remains in full flight is due largely to the support of her manager-producer son, Damon Elliott, who is a successful, well-known and respected record producer, singer, songwriter and composer in his own right.
Elliott produced “Applause,” written by songwriter Diane Warren, who holds the record for the most Academy Award nominations, for which he is anticipated to receive an Oscar nomination. Additionally, he produced the title track for the upcoming film “80 for Brady,” which was also written by Diane Warren, and sung by Dolly Parton, Belinda Carlisle, Cyndi Lauper, Gloria Estefan and Debbie Harry.
“The show is a first class production with a cast of extremely talented young people,” says Elliott. “We are delighted to be a part of this musical which features songs the audiences will know and will be a memorable experience for the entire family.”
HITS! The Musical was created by Bob Gries, founder and executive producer, to give 29 talented young performers the opportunity to take center stage and showcase their individual talents.
The allure of working with the finest young artists in the country drew a superb creative team who wanted to help showcase all their talent, including Cynthia Nekvasil, Director; Chloe Lowery, Associate Director; Tony Bruno, Musical Arranger/Composer; Grady Bowman, Choreographer; Camille Trust, Musical Director; Courtney Lopez, Assistant Director; Barry Lather, Set and Lighting Designer; and Cynthia Nordstrom, Costume Designer.
For more information about the tour, go to www.thehitstour.com