James Van Der Beek was forced to miss an anticipated Dawson’s Creek reunion on Monday night after he became very ill during his treatment for colorectal cancer.

Instead, the star’s wife, Kimberly, and their six kids were seen making a surprise appearance on stage at the Richard Rogers Theater in New York City, bringing the entire cast of the show to tears as they sang along to the show’s popular theme tune.

James and Kimberly’s daughters were cheered on by Michelle Williams, Katie Holmes, and Joshua Jackson as they sang solo tunes on the verses of ‘I Don’t Wanna Wait’ by Paula Cole.

A round of applause broke out as Kimberly then arrived on the stage with her other kids, Annabel, Gwendolyn, Joshua, and Jeremiah, to complete the chorus.

In the fan videos that were seen circulating online, so many stars wiped away their tears during the tune while an emotional Michelle, who starred as Jen on the show, wrapped her arms around her onscreen grandmother, Mary Beth Peil.

James had shared during the night that Michelle was the brainchild behind this event, which saw the cast join forces for a live reading of the show’s pilot episode to benefit F Cancer.