Glee Star Lea Michele Sings through Her Hair Damage

ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J., May 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Calling all gleeks! Does beautiful hair make you want to sing with glee? Lea Michele, Golden Globe-nominated actress of the hit series "Glee," is partnering with Dove Hair Care™ to inspire women everywhere to keep doing their favorite things to their hair, because reinvented Dove shampoos and conditioners take care of the damage. To celebrate, Lea will be performing an exclusive rendition of the iconic song "My Favorite Things" that will preview on TV and be available at www.dovegleeforall.com.

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"I started performing on Broadway at eight years old and entertaining continues to be one of my favorite things, but the grueling 'Glee' rehearsals and filming cause me to do an array of damage to my hair," said Lea Michele. "Dove Hair Care has now become one of my new favorite things. The products take care of the damage so I can focus on performing rather than worrying about my hair!"

My Favorite Things

Lea Michele puts her hair through extremes to play character Rachel Berry with blow drying, straightening, curling and styling. She has even restyled her hair four times in one day to film certain slushie attacks.

Celebrity Spokestylist Gretta Monahan joins Lea in the video to give her – and all women – tips and tools from Dove Hair Care to help her take care of her damage. Gretta's pre-performance tips allow Lea to concentrate on singing as she belts the iconic Rodgers & Hammerstein song "My Favorite Things" from "The Sound of Music."

Hair damage is not limited to actresses like Lea; all women torture their locks every day. Ironically, 88 percent of women believe their hair has little or no damage at all.(1)

"Women do not realize that the everyday things they do to their hair – like blow drying and heat styling, and even things they may not expect like brushing and putting hair in a ponytail – cause major damage," said Monahan. "When hair is damaged it prevents women from achieving the beautiful locks they desire. The new Fiber Actives technology in the Dove Hair Care line takes care of hair damage, allowing women everywhere to have beautifully smooth hair."

A teaser commercial featuring Lea Michele and Gretta Monahan debuts on FOX beginning Tuesday, May 25 (8 p.m. EDT/7 p.m. CDT), during a commercial break in the season finale of "American Idol." The extended version, including Lea Michele's solo of "My Favorite Things," will be available on www.dovegleeforall.com.  

Dove Glee for All  

To help the "Glee" star continue doing her favorite thing this spring, Dove has signed on as the official Hair Care sponsor of the upcoming Glee Live! Concert Tour.  Women attending the tour will have the chance to pose in a Glee-themed photo booth and get product samples.

Gleeks without tickets to the sold-out tour need not worry. As part of the brand's partnership with "Glee," fans everywhere can enter the Dove Glee for All Sweepstakes for a chance to tour the "Glee" set and other themed prizes. The contest runs through June 9, 2010. Visit dovegleeforall.com to enter and view exclusive footage from the "Glee" tour, the making of Lea's "My Favorite Things" performance, and hair care tips from celebrity stylist Gretta Monahan.

Fans can also interact with Dove Hair Care and "Glee" online through both Facebook and Twitter at Facebook.com/Dove and Twitter.com/Dove. They can join the  #dovegleeforall "Twitter party" that will be held on May 12 where they can submit questions to be answered by Lea Michele, win prizes including tickets to the sold-out "Glee" tour, and get hair style tips from celebrity stylist Gretta Monahan.

"We are thrilled to partner with Lea Michele and sponsor the upcoming Glee Live! Concert Tour," said David Rubin, Dove Hair Care Marketing Director. "The musical connection to 'Glee' is a natural fit with our hair care philosophy of giving all women hair worth singing about because Dove takes care of the damage."

Reinvented Dove Hair Care

The entire Dove Hair Care line has been reinvented with a new formula and contains new Fiber Actives technology.  It also continues to include Micro Moisture serum to protect against and repair hair damage for beautifully smooth hair. In addition to the new formula, the line features a new look with premium-looking, sleek satin white bottles and an updated scent that includes fruity, floral and woody fragrance notes. Dove Hair Care takes care of the damage so women can keep doing their favorite things, be it styling, bleaching, straightening, driving with the convertible top down, or wearing a ponytail. The collection is available in food, drug, mass and club retailers.

About Dove

Dove, manufactured by Unilever, is the No. 1 personal wash brand nationwide.  One in every three households uses a Dove product(2) which includes beauty bars, body washes, anti-perspirant/deodorants, body mists, hair care and styling aids. Dove Men+Care™ is the newest range of products from Dove, developed specially for men. Dove is available nationwide in food, drug and mass outlet stores.

About Unilever North America

Unilever works to create a better future every day.  We help people feel good, look good and get more out of life with brands and services that are good for them and good for others.  Each day, around the world, we serve over two billion consumers. In the United States, Canada and the Greater Caribbean (Trinidad & Tobago, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico) the portfolio includes brand icons such as: Axe, Becel, Ben & Jerry's, Bertolli, Blue Band, Breyers, Caress, Country Crock, Degree, Dove personal care products, Hellmann's, Klondike, Knorr, Lipton, Omo, Popsicle, Promise, Q-Tips, Skippy, Slim-Fast, Suave, Sunsilk and Vaseline. All of the preceding brand names are registered trademarks of the Unilever Group of Companies. Dedicated to serving consumers and the communities where we live, work and play, Unilever employs more than 13,000 people across North America – generating nearly $10 billion in sales in 2009.  For more information, visit www.unileverusa.com, www.unilever.ca, or www.unilevercaribbean.com. 

About "My Favorite Things"

With music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, "My Favorite Things" was written for THE SOUND OF MUSIC -- first a smash Broadway musical, then an iconic motion picture. Today, THE SOUND OF MUSIC is recognized as the most successful movie musical of all time, and is currently available in over three dozen languages.  From stage and screen to jazz, rock and dance interpretations, "My Favorite Things" has truly become a "favorite thing" of music lovers the world over. "My Favorite Things" and the musicals of Rodgers & Hammerstein are owned and managed by the Imagem Music Group, the world's #1 independent music publishing company.  For more: www.imagem-music.com.

About Dove Hair Glee for All Instant Win Game and Sweepstakes

ABBREVIATED OFFICIAL RULES. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. A PURCHASE DOES NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING. Open only to current legal residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia, who are 18 years of age or older at the time of entry. Void where prohibited. Promotion starts 4/9/10 at 12:00:01 p.m. ET and ends 6/9/10 at 11:59:59 a.m. ET. To play, and for Official Rules, including instant win odds and prize details, visit www.dovegleeforall.com. Odds of winning the Grand Prize depend on the number of eligible entries received. Sponsor: Conopco, Inc. d/b/a Unilever HPC, Englewood Cliffs, NJ. For Official Rules, including instant win odds and prize details, visit DoveGleeForAll.com.

(1) Dove Hair Care Study, national survey of 1,000 women 18-64, conducted by StrategyOne (September 2008)

(2)  AC Nielsen (2004)

SOURCE Dove Hair Care