Chester Gregory to Join MOTOWN THE MUSICAL Tour as Berry Gordy

Producers Kevin McCollum, Doug Morris and Berry Gordy are thrilled to announce that Broadway veteran Chester Gregory will join the First National Tour of MOTOWN THE MUSICAL in the leading role of Berry Gordy. Mr. Gregory's first performance will be tonight in Richmond, VA.

The First National Tour of MOTOWN THE MUSICAL opened to critical acclaim on May 8, 2014, at Chicago's Oriental Theatre and has played 698 performances to date in 35 cities across North America.In 88 playing weeks, the tour has grossed over $105 million, playing to more than 1.4 million people. MOTOWN THE MUSICAL previously announced that the tour recouped its $8.5 million dollar capitalization cost in less than ten months on the road.

The tour company currently features CHESTER GREGORY as Berry Gordy, ALLISON SEMMESas Diana Ross, JESSE NAGER as Smokey Robinson, JARRAN MUSE as Marvin Gaye, and NATHANIEL CULLORS and LEON OUTLAW, JR. rotating in the role of Young Berry Gordy/Stevie Wonder/Michael Jackson. The ensemble includes NIK ALEXANDER, ERICK BUCKLEY, CHANTE CARMEL, STEPHEN CERF, CHADAÉ, PRESTON W. DUGGER III, LYNORRIS EVANS, ANISSA FELIX, TALYA GROVES, ROBERT HARTWELL, DANA MARIE INGRAHAM, RODNEY EARL JACKSON, JR., ELIJAH AHMAD LEWIS, LOREN LOTT, JARVIS B. MANNING, JR., KRISHA MARCANO, MARQ MOSS, RASHAD NAYLOR, RAMONE OWENS, OLIVIA PUCKETT, NICHOLAS RYAN, JAMISON SCOTT, JOEY STONE, DOUG STORM, MARTINA SYKES, NIK WALKER, and GALEN J. WILLIAMS.

CHESTER GREGORY (Berry Gordy). Chester is thrilled and honored to join the cast of Motown the Musical. He was last seen starring in the Goodman Theatre's revival of August Wilson's Two Trains Running. His Broadway credits include Hairspray, Tarzan, Cry-Baby and Sister Act. He has toured nationally with Dreamgirls, Sister Act, as well as his one-man show The Eve of Jackie Wilson. Chester has received many awards including the Jeff Award and NAACP Theatre Award, and has been presented the key to the city of his hometown of Gary, Indiana and East Chicago. He has also been chosen as an Honorary State Representative and has received a Honorary Doctorate from his alma mater Columbia College in Chicago. Chester is also a songwriter and producer. Join him on his journey @ChesterGregory and chestergregory.com.

MOTOWN THE MUSICAL is scheduled to perform in the following 2016 tour cities with additional dates to be announced shortly:

A full listing of announced tour dates is available at www.MotownTheMusical.com/tour.

Directed by Charles Randolph-Wright, MOTOWN THE MUSICAL is the true American dream story of Motown founder Berry Gordy's journey from featherweight boxer to the heavyweight music mogul who launched the careers of Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson, Marvin Gaye and so many more.

Featuring more than 40 classic hits such as "My Girl" and "Ain't No Mountain High Enough,"MOTOWN THE MUSICAL tells the story behind the hits as Diana, Smokey, Berry and the whole Motown family fight against the odds to create the soundtrack of change in America. Motown shattered barriers, shaped our lives and made us all move to the same beat.

MOTOWN THE MUSICAL features choreography by Patricia Wilcox (A Night with Janis Joplin) and Warren Adams (Toy Story), scenic design by David Korins (Bring It On: The Musical, Annie), costume design by Tony Award® nominee ESosa (The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess, "Project Runway"), lighting design by Tony Award® winner Natasha Katz (Once, Sister Act), sound design by Tony Award® nominee Peter Hylenski (Rock of Ages, The Scottsboro Boys), projection design by Daniel Brodie (Jekyll and Hyde), hair and wig design by Charles LaPointe (Memphis) and casting by Telsey + Company.

MOTOWN THE MUSICAL's arrangements and orchestrations are by Grammy and Tony Award® nominee Ethan Popp (Rock of Ages), who also serves as music supervisor in reproducing the classic "Sound of Young America," with co-orchestrations and additional arrangements by Tony Award® nominee Bryan Crook ("Smash") and dance arrangements by Zane Mark (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels).

MOTOWN THE MUSICAL is produced by Tony Award® winning producer Kevin McCollum (Rent,In the Heights, Avenue Q, Something Rotten!), Chairman and CEO of SONY Music EntertainmentDoug Morris and Motown founder Berry Gordy.

For more information, visit www.MotownTheMusical.com.