Headlining the show is the legendary, ageless Chubby Checker. Checker grew up in South Philadelphia and formed a street-corner harmony group at age eight. He learned to play piano at Settlement Music School and went to South Philadelphia High School, where he entertained classmates, including Fabian Forte, with vocal impressions of Jerry Lee Lewis, Elvis, and Fats Domino. After school, he worked at Produce Market, where his boss was so impressed with his customers’ enjoyment of Checker’s singing impressions that he had him record a version of “Jingle Bells” in which he imitated popular recording stars. Dick Clark sent the song as a Christmas greeting to his business associates, and Cameo Parkway Records signed Checker. In 1959, “The Class” was his first hit record. “The Twist” was originally a “B” side, but Checker tirelessly promoted it on TV, in interviews and in performances. By the summer of 1960, “The Twist” became a #1 hit, introducing the concept of couples “dancing apart to the beat” and leading to a revolution in dancing with one dance craze leading to another (the Jerk, the Hully Gully, the Boogaloo, etc.), and Checker was at the forefront with “The Fly,” “The Pony,” and “The Hucklebuck.”

In 1962, “Pony Time” was a #1 hit that was on the charts for 16 weeks, and Checker starred in two movies: Don’t Knock the Twist and Twist Around the Clock. For the first time in record history, “The Twist” re-entered the charts and, by January of 1962, it was #1 again on the Billboard charts. Chubby Checker merchandise was everywhere: t-shirts, shoes, ties, dolls, even chewing gum! More huge hits followed: “The Fly,” “Let’s Twist Again,” “The Limbo Rock,” and he won the Grammy® for Best Rock Performance. He was the only act in Billboard’s history to have five albums in the top 12 at the same time. In 1964, he married Catharina Lodders, Miss World of 1962.

Checker continues to push musical boundaries while performing all over the world. In 1988, “Yo Twist,” performed with the Fat Boys, was a #14 hit and in 2007 “Knock Down the Wall” went to #1 on the Billboard Dance charts, introducing him to a new generation of fans.