THE STAR-STUDDED ONE-NIGHT-ONLY RETURN OF
“THE ROSIE O’DONNELL SHOW”
RAISES OVER $600,000
IN SUPPORT OF
THE ACTORS FUND
New York, NY (March 27, 2020) – 12-time Emmy Award® winner and Tony Award® recipient Rosie O’Donnell and actor/Producer Erich Bergen are ecstatic to announce that the star-studded one-night-only return of the legendary, 25-time Emmy Award-winning “The Rosie O’Donnell Show,” raised over $600,000 in support of The Actors Fund in order to help in this time of crisis. Additional donations can still be made by visiting give.actorsfund.org/Rosie
This special event, hosted by Rosie O’Donnell, produced by actor/producer Erich Bergen, and presented in partnership with Revelations Entertainment and Broadway.com, was directed by Paul Wontorek, and streamed LIVE on Broadway.com and their YouTube channel.
The participants have won a collective 12 Academy Awards, 63 Tony Awards, 39 Emmy Awards, 52 Grammy Awards, 20 Golden Globe Awards, and 19 Screen Actors Guild Awards.
The evening, hosted by Rosie O’Donnell, featured performances and appearances by some of the biggest names in all of entertainment, all participating live from the comfort of their own homes. The evening’s entertainment began with original “The Rosie O’Donnell Show” Music Director/Composer/Producer John McDaniel performing a rendition of “We Need a Little Rosie” to the tune of “We Need a Little Christmas” from Mame; and also inlcuded live performances from Shoshana Bean singing “Don’t Rain on My Parade” from Funny Girl; Tituss Burgess singing “The Glory of Love” from Beaches; Kristin Chenoweth singing “Taylor the Latte Boy” which she sang on her first appearance on Rosie’s show in 1999; Gavin Creel singing “You Matter to Me” from Waitress; Darren Criss singing “Being Alive” from Company; Gloria Estefan singing “There’s Always Tomorrow”; Jordan Fisher singing “For Forever” from Dear Evan Hansen; Neil Patrick Harris performing a magic act with his children; Patti LuPone performing “A Hundred Years From Today,” “ Nat King Cole’s “Smile”, and a tease of “Meadowlark” from The Baker’s Wife; Audra McDonald & Will Swenson also singing Nat King Cole’s “Smile”; Katharine McPhee & David Foster singing Celine Dion’s “Because You Loved Me”; Alan Menken performing a medley of his hit songs including “Under The Sea” and “Part of Your World” from The Little Mermaid, “Be Our Guest” and “Beauty and the Beast” from Beauty and the Beast, “Suddenly, Seymour” from Little Shop of Horrors, “Colors of the Wind” from Pocahontas, “King of New York” from Newsies, “Friend Like Me” and “A Whole New World” from Aladdin, “Go the Distance” from Hercules, “I See the Light” from Tangled, and “That’s How You Know” from Enchanted; Matthew Morrison singing a medley of “The Bare Necessities” from The Jungle Book and “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah” from Song of the South; Kelli O’Hara singing “Take Me to the World” from Evening Primrose; Lauren Patten singing “Ironic” from Jagged Little Pill; Ben Platt singing Adele’s “Make You Feel My Love”; Billy Porter singing “Not While I’m Around” from Sweeney Todd; Lea Salonga live from Manilla singing “Reflection” from Mulan; Adrienne Warren live from her bathtub singing “Simply The Best” from Tina; and Barry Manilow finishing the program with a medley of his hit songs including “Daybreak,” “Can’t Smile Without You,” “Copacabana,” and “I Made it Through the Rain.”
Throughout the special event, guests stopped by for live interviews with Rosie including Laura Benanti, Nate Berkus, Matthew Broderick & Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Erivo, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Harvey Fierstein, Judith Light, Idina Menzel, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Jeremy Pope, Randy Rainbow, Chita Rivera, and Miranda Sings.
Additional video packages including Stephen Sondheim and Andrew Lloyd Webber wishing each other a happy birthday, as well as messages from Uzo Aduba, Skylar Astin, Beth Behrs & Michael Gladis, Annette Bening, Alexandra Billings, Andrew Burnap, Miguel Cervantes, Brandon Victor Dixon, Matt Doyle, Sutton Foster, Morgan Freeman, Christopher & Veronica Jackson, Jeremy Jordan, Andy Karl & Orfeh, a tap-dancing Jane Krakowski, Lorin Latarro, Lorna Luft, Rob McClure, Bernadette Peters, Andrew Rannells, Anika Noni Rose, Seth Rudetsky & James Wesley, Jordin Sparks, Elizabeth Stanley, Ali Stroker, a hula-hooping Marisa Tomei, Aaron Tveit, Leslie Uggams, Frankie Valli, Ben Vereen and Jessica Keenan-Wynn.
Associate Producers for this special event include Jim Caruso, Tess Ferrell, Julie Garnye, and Kim Swann. Casting by Telsey + Company, Craig Burns CSA.
For six remarkable seasons, “The Rosie O’Donnell Show” remained the hottest thing in daytime television. From its first season to its final episode, which culminated in a giant Broadway medley, “The Rosie O’Donnell Show” devoted more airtime to promoting theatrical productions than any other national program in television history. Even after ending her show, O’Donnell has remained a tireless supporter of Broadway, as a performer, a producer, an outspoken fan, and a three-time host of the Tony Awards. In 2014, the Tony Awards honored O’Donnell with its Isabelle Stevenson Award in recognition of her commitment to arts education.
The Actors Fund services remain available for everyone in the performing arts and entertainment community. These services include: Artists Health Insurance Resource Center, The Career Center, Housing Resources, Addiction & Recovery, HIV/AIDS and Senior Services, Counseling and Emergency Financial Assistance, as well as The Friedman Health Center for the Performing Arts in New York City.
To make a tax-deductible donation, visit give.actorsfund.org/Rosie
The Actors Fund is a national human services organization that fosters stability and resiliency, and provides a safety net for performing arts and entertainment professionals over their lifespan. Through offices in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, The Fund serves everyone in film, theater, television, music, opera, radio and dance with programs including social services and emergency financial assistance, health care and insurance counseling, housing, and secondary employment and training services.
Press Contacts:
Rick Miramontez / Alana Karpoff / Michael Jorgensen / Gerilyn Shur
rick@omdkc.com / alana@omdkc.com / michael@omdkc.com / gerilyn@omdkc.com
212 695 7400
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