*Two actresses who have played Celie in “The Color Purple” will participate in a performance of “What the World Needs Now Is Love” by dozens of Broadway All-Stars on tonight’s episode of NBC’s “Maya & Marty.”
Tony winner Whoopi Goldberg, whose performance of Celie in the 1985 film earned an Oscar nomination, and Cynthia Erivo, who won a Tony earlier this month for the role in Broadway’s current revival, were among roughly 60 Broadway stars to record an updated version of the Burt Bacharach/Hal David classic last week in support of Orlando’s LGBT community following the club shootings.
Their “Maya & Marty” appearance tonight marks the first time the song will be performed outside the recording studio by this all-star Broadway lineup.
Rosie Perez, Hamilton star Renee Elise Goldsberry, Billy Porter and Brian Stokes Mitchell of Shuffle Along, Lillias White and Tituss Burgess of the Netflix series “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” are also part of tonight’s telecast hosted by Maya Rudolph and Martin Short.
They’ll join Roger Bart, Andrea Burns, Charles Busch, Ann Hampton Callaway, Paul Castree, Michael Cerveris, Kevin Chamberlin, Lilla Crawford, Victor Garber, Ana Gasteyer, Frankie James Grande, Joel Grey, Sean Hayes, Joshua Henry, Megan Hilty, James Monroe Iglehart, Judy Kuhn, Jose Llana, Anika Larsen, Beth Malone, Andrea Martin, Janet Metz, Jessie Mueller, Kelli O’Hara, Rory O’Malle, Orfeh, Christine Pedi, Alice Ripley, Chita Rivera, Keala Settle, Kate Shindle, Jennifer Simard, James Wesley, Juli Wesley, Marissa Jaret Winokur and B.D. Wong.
Watch the video below, and tune in to “Maya & Marty” tonight for their first-ever live performance.
“Ever since this tragedy happened, which touched so many people in the world as well as our company in Orlando, we’ve been looking for more ways to raise awareness and help the victims and their families,” said NBC Entertainment chairman Robert Greenblatt. “Lorne Michaels and I are so pleased to showcase this song of love — about love — and we thank the Broadway community, producers Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley, and Van Dean of Broadway Records for putting this incredible recording together so quickly.”
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