Update Monday, February 7 at 7:00 p.m.: There’s no law against waiting, but it looks like we won’t have to wait much longer. Per Deadline, we now have the full cast and opening date for the Broadway revival of Funny Girl starring Beanie Feldstein as Fanny Brice. As previously announced, Ramin Karimloo will play Nick Arnstein, Jane Lynch will play Mrs. Rosie Brice, and Jared Grimes will play Eddie Ryan. They’ll be joined by Peter Francis James as Florenz Ziegfeld, Ephie Aardema as Emma/Mrs. Nadler, Debra Cardona as Mrs. Meeker, Toni DiBuono as Mrs. Strakosh, and Martin Moran as Tom Keeney. The rest of the full cast includes Julie Benko, Amber Ardolino, Daniel Beeman, Colin Bradbury, Kurt Thomas Csolak, Leslie Donna Flesner, Afra Hines, Masumi Iwai, Aliah James, Jeremiah James, Danielle Kelsey, Stephen Mark Lukas, Alicia Hadiya Lundgren, John Thomas Manzari, Liz McCartney, Katie Mitchell, Justin Prescott, Mariah Reives, and Leslie Blake Walker. Costume designer Susan Hilferty will be tasked with dressing that lengthy list of people. Rehearsals for the Funny Girl revival reportedly started today, with previews set to begin on March 26 at the August Wilson Theatre. The official opening is scheduled for April 24.
Original story follows.
Hello, once again, gorgeous: For the first time since Barbra Streisand rocketed to fame in 1964 as Fanny Brice, we’re getting a Broadway revival of Funny Girl. Per a press release, none other than Beanie Feldstein (of Booksmart, Lady Bird, and on Broadway, Hello, Dolly!) is going to star as Fanny in a revival of the musical, starting performances in spring 2022 at a theater to be announced. The production is directed by Spring Awakening’s Michael Mayer, who recently directed a London version of the musical with Sheridan Smith, though this Feldstein version is new and not just a transfer of that. Sonia Friedman Productions, Scott Landis, and Chocolate Factory Productions are all producing this version of Funny Girl, which has music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Bob Merrill, and a book by Isobel Lennart. This revival will have choreography by Ellenore Scott, tap choreography by Ayodele Casel, and a revised book by Harvey Fierstein, who also modified the script for the recent London run.
“The first time I played Fanny Brice was at my third birthday party, in a head-to-toe leopard print outfit my mom made for me,†Feldstein, who will soon star as Monica Lewinsky in American Crime Story: Impeachment, said in a statement. “So, it’s safe to say that stepping into this iconic role, on Broadway and not in my family’s backyard, is truly my lifelong dream come true. I am immensely grateful to be able to do so alongside such a remarkable creative team, and cannot wait for audiences to get back in theaters again!â€
When it premieres this spring, the revival will be the first time Funny Girl has been on Broadway in 58 years, as other attempts to revive the musical (including one version with Lauren Ambrose) fell through. Of course, that’s not counting the whole “Broadway revival of Funny Girl†plot on Glee, which is really just further proof of that show’s dark prophetic powers.