Diana Ross’ stormy 1983 Central Park show is heading to theaters for a two-night screening as part of Diana Ross: Her Live, Love and Legacy, a film featuring previously unseen footage and messages from the singer’s family.
The remastered movie will premiere worldwide on March 26th, Ross’ 75th birthday, followed by another screening at March 28th, both at 7 p.m. local time. A list of the nearly 700 participating U.S. theaters is available at the Fathom Events website; international cinemas and ticket sales will be announced at a later date.
The Steve Bender-directed Diana Ross Live in Central Park, issued on DVD in 2012, documents the vocalist’s two-night performance at Central Park’s Great Lawn in New York, New York, which was originally broadcast on Showtime and staged to raise money for a children’s playground. Nearly a half-million people attended the first date on July 21st, 1983, which was cut short by a massive thunderstorm, and she rescheduled the show for the following night.
A trailer for the film shows Ross staring down the storm and telling her audience, “We’re gonna get wet — that’s OK.”
“I envisioned a dream, and that’s what I created over those two days in Central Park. I picked a goal, and then imagined all the details,” Ross said in a statement. “I believe imagination is magical, that we can think of something and bring it into being.” Fathom CEO Ray Nutt called the screening the first part of a “year-long celebration” honoring Ross.
The singer will celebrate her birthday with a special performance at the 2019 Grammy Awards, scheduled for February 10th. The event follows her the launch of her new Las Vegas residency, “Diamond Diana,” which runs February 6th through the 23rd.