Katharine McPhee-Foster has returned to the stage less than two weeks after a “horrible tragedy” in the family led to cancellation of performances abroad.
The “American Idol” alum and her husband David Foster reunited onstage in Ravello, Italy, alongside McPhee’s “Waitress” co-star Erich Bergen. She and the Broadway star performed covers of songs by Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons and Foster played piano, according to videos posted Wednesday on Instagram by Bergen.
It appeared to be McPhee-Foster’s first publicly documented performance since she departed early from the David Foster & Friends Asia Tour 2023 earlier this month due to the reported death of her and the record producer’s nanny. The nanny has been reported to be the woman who died after being run over by a car inside a Toyota dealership in Mission Hills on Aug. 9.
The 55-year-old woman, identified by the dealership as Yadira Calito, was killed when a customer driving an SUV at Hamer Toyota lost control of the vehicle and crashed into the reception area. Two other people were injured in the accident and survived, authorities said.
The couple, who wed in 2019, reportedly employed Calito to look after their 2-year-old son, Rennie.
Reports of Calito’s death surfaced after McPhee-Foster announced that she would be missing the two shows closing out the Asia leg of Foster’s tour. The “Smash” and “Scorpion” star, who had been touring with her record-producer husband, did not specify what the tragedy was at the time. It’s unclear if their son joined them on tour.
“At least one of us needs to get back home to our family,” McPhee said in an Aug. 10 statement addressed to fans who had purchased tickets to see her and Foster in Jakarta, Indonesia. “Please know how sorry I am and how much I wish to return one day and perform for you all.”
Foster, the 16-time Grammy-winning composer, made “necessary adjustments” and resumed with the performance in Jakarta as McPhee returned to Los Angeles.
After the Jakarta shows, the “Over It” singer and the three-time Oscar nominee were set to take a three-month break from the tour. They are scheduled to resume performances in the United States with a pair of early November shows in Warren, Mich.
Representatives for the musical duo did not immediately respond Thursday to The Times’ requests for comment.
Times staff writer Christi Carras contributed to this report.
