‘The Color Purple’ & ‘Hamilton’ Honor Prince On Broadway

Last night in New York City, the casts of two Broadway musicals paid tribute to Prince, who passed away yesterday at age 57. Audiences attending the wildly popular Hamilton as well as The Color Purple were witness to full cast sing-a-longs of classic hits made famous by the late Purple One.

“Today we lost a legend, Prince, who was a good friend of mine,” The Color Purple star Jennifer Hudson told the audience at Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre. She then led the cast of the musical that includes Cynthia Erivo and Danielle Brooks through a lively rendition of “Purple Rain.” Watch video of the special performance here:

“Step away from your computer,” Hamilton creator and star Lin-Manuel Miranda tweeted yesterday. “Walk around, blast some Prince. It’s the only thing that has saved my day, it may save yours.” Down the street from where Hudson was leading “Purple Rain,” Miranda and the Hamilton cast treated the audience at Richard Rodgers Theatre to a special rendition of Prince’s “Let’s Go Crazy.” Watch Miranda lead the cast through “Let’s Go Crazy”:

One of the stars of Hamilton, actor Leslie Odom Jr. was a guest last night on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert. The show’s host, who honored Prince by using purple lighting, discussed with Odom the night Prince attended a staging of Hamilton and a private concert that followed. Watch the interview with Odom as well as Colbert’s tribute with Jon Batiste below: