Dionne Warwick withdrew from a Carnegie Hall benefit after leg and foot pain prevented her from performing.
The 85-year-old singer had been scheduled for the Oct. 11 concert, Deborah Silver & Fabulous Friends: Voices for ALS, at Zankel Hall in New York City.
The evening brought together performers from pop, jazz and cabaret to support research into amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, commonly known as ALS.
Silver was making her Carnegie Hall debut. Before the concert, she had spoken about growing up singing along to Warwick’s records and preparing to share a stage with her.
Warwick Apologized as Marilyn Maye Took Her Place
“My leg and foot would not allow me to stand nor walk at the moment,” Warwick said in a statement obtained by Page Six. She apologized for missing the audience and said she was concentrating on rest and recovery.
Marilyn Maye answered Silver’s call and filled in for Warwick, the outlet reported. The cabaret singer joined a lineup that included Jon Secada, his daughter Mikaela Secada and jazz vocalist Stella Cole.
Warwick and Silver had planned to sing “What the World Needs Now Is Love” together. In an Oct. 7 interview with BroadwayWorld, Silver said she expected the song to carry particular significance with her sister and other people living with ALS in the audience.
Silver Covered the Costs so Ticket Proceeds Could Fund Research
Silver and her husband paid the venue, production and performer costs, Page Six reported. The event had been advertised with a commitment that 100 percent of ticket proceeds would support ALS research.
Silver’s sister, Marjie Berman Block, has lived with the disease for nearly 18 years, according to the BroadwayWorld interview. Silver said she hoped a future edition of Voices for ALS could become a “victory party” celebrating a cure.
Her fundraising work predates the concert. Silver recorded Pure Silver to benefit ALS research and has continued donating its proceeds. She also launched the charitable initiative SLAM ALS with her daughter, Madison.
Warwick Had Spent Five Months Recovering From Leg Surgery
Warwick disclosed emergency leg surgery in September 2025, E! News reported. In a March 2026 newsletter to her fan club, she described a recovery marked by severe pain and tears, while expressing pride in regaining some mobility.
“I am now able to walk, gingerly, but I am walking,” she wrote. The message said she had begun performing again after five months of recovery, starting with a Feb. 28 appearance in Coachella and a March 7 date in Warren, Ohio.
She also outlined plans for Atlanta later that month and performances in Germany and the United Kingdom in May. Warwick thanked supporters for continuing to attend as she returned to live work.
Her Return Coincided With New Music With Cynthia Erivo
Speaking with Georgia Public Broadcasting‘s Pamela Kirkland ahead of her March 20 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra concert, Warwick discussed “Ocean in the Desert,” her collaboration with Cynthia Erivo.
Warwick said they first met when Erivo was performing in The Color Purple in New York. She later watched Erivo sing “Alfie” in her honor at the 2023 Kennedy Center Honors. When Warwick invited her to record together, Erivo accepted immediately, she recalled.
The song belongs to DWuets, which Warwick described as her final album. Diane Warren wrote the project’s songs, and Warwick’s son and manager, Damon Elliott, produced the duets.
Warwick compared Warren’s writing to the work of longtime collaborator Hal David. “She writes from her heart, not her head,” she told Kirkland.