The Broadway revival of Funny Girl will end its run at the August Wilson Theatre on Sunday, September 3, 2023 after 30 previews and 599 performances. Current stars Lea Michele, Ramin Karimloo, Jared Grimes, and Tovah Feldshuh have all extended their contracts to be with the show until the very end. A national tour will launch in September 2023.
Lea Michele as Fanny Brice and Ramin Karimloo as Nicky Arnstein
Funny Girl is written by Isobel Lennart (original book), with a score by Jule Styne and Bob Merrill. This bittersweet comedy is the story of the indomitable Fanny Brice, a girl from the Lower East Side who dreamed of a life on the stage. Everyone told her she’d never be a star, but then something funny happened’”she became one of the most beloved performers in history, shining brighter than the brightest lights of Broadway. Featuring some of the most iconic songs in theatre history including “Don’t Rain On My Parade,” “I’m the Greatest Star,” and “People,” the revival, which opened in April 2022, has s revised book by Harvey Fierstein, with Michael Mayer as director.
When this revival opened (see Stage and Cinema‘s review), the role of Fanny Brice was played by Beanie Feldstein, with Jane Lynch as Rose Brice. After a tumultuous engagement that saw largely negative reviews, a single Tony nomination (for Grimes as Eddie Ryan), and dwindling audiences, the producers released Feldstein from her contract six months early, in favor of bringing in Michele to save the floundering box office numbers (which she did). At the same time, standby Julie Benko became a star when she took on the role of Fanny for a full month over the summer of 2022, and she now plays the role once a week.
Tovah Feldshuh as Mrs. Brice and Jared Grimes as Eddie Ryan
Also in the cast are Peter Francis James as Florenz Ziegfeld, Ephie Aardema as Emma/Mrs. Nadler, Debra Cardona as Mrs. Meeker, Toni DiBuono as Mrs. Strakosh, Martin Moran as Tom Keeney, and Miriam Ali, Amber Ardolino, Daniel Beeman, Colin Bradbury, Kurt Csolak, John Michael Fiumara, Leslie Donna Flesner, Candice Hatakeyama, Curtis Holland, Masumi Iwai, Aliah James, Jeremiah James, Danielle Kelsey, Stephen Mark Lukas, Alicia Lundgren, John Manzari, Liz McCartney, Connor McRory, Justin Prescott, Katie Mitchell, Mariah Reives, Barbara Tirrell, and Leslie Blake Walker
Lea Michele (Fanny Brice) and Jared Grimes (Eddie Ryan)
photos by Matthew Murphy
Funny Girl
August Wilson Theatre, 245 W 52nd St.
opened April 24, 2022 (reviewed on April 27); ends on
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