It’s going to be one of the most anticipated Broadway shows in a generation. Lea Michele is less than three weeks away from being one of Broadway’s biggest draws as she begins rehearsing for the Broadway revival of “Funny Girl” on September 6.
The “Glee” alum is taking over the role of Fanny Brice from the current lead Julie Benko. She followed Beanie Feldstein, who opened the revival.
The show’s official Instagram account gave a teaser of Michele’s debut in a rehearsal on Friday of last week. The short clip shows Michele dancing while a VoiceOver of the actress sings “I’m The Greatest Star.”
“A star returns,” a message in the video reads. “Hello, gorgeous. Hello, Lea.”
The clip is in black and white and shows Michele getting ready for the role. In one moment, she is seen dancing alone, and in another part of the clip, she is performing with co-stars Ramin Karimloo and Jared Grimes.
Karimloo plays Nick Arnstein who is the show’s romantic lead. And Tony-nominated Grimes plays Eddie, a friend of Fanny’s who helps her find success on the stage.
Of course, the original production of “Funny Girl” starred legendary Barbara Streisand as Fanny Brice. It opened in March 1964 and finished its run in July 1967. It was announced in August of 2021 that Feldstein would play Brice in the revival which opened in April of 2022.
Feldstein was expected to stay in her role through 2022, but it was announced in June that she would be departing the production in September. Feldstein announced her exit two months earlier than expected, at the end of July, saying on Instagram that the production was taking a “different direction.”
The day after her announcement, the production let it be known that Michele would take over the role and Benko would play the part for a month while Lea got ready to play the role.
Fans of Michele’s knew that the longtime “Funny Girl” fan had longed to join the show.
Michele shared a carousel of two pictures on Instagram, first posting a photo from the present day looking over her shoulder as she posed in front of the “Funny Girl” marquee.
In the second image, she shared a photo from back in the days of “Glee,” where her character, Rachel Berry, posed in the same manner in front of a fake marquee for the show.
“A dream come true,” she wrote in the caption.
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