In a way, Lea Michele has been auditioning for the lead role in Funny Girl her entire life, and now that she has it, she’s working hard to deliver a dazzling performance.
Yesterday, the Glee star shared a glimpse of her Broadway show script on her Instagram Story, writing, “Here we go… ,” and adding a red heart emoji, suggesting that she is starting rehearsals for the musical.
Producers for the Broadway production of Funny Girl announced earlier this month that Michele would take over the lead role of Fanny Brice from Beanie Feldstein, who revealed just hours before that she’d be departing the show months before her run was set to end.
“Playing Fanny Brice on Broadway has been a lifelong dream of mine, and doing so for the last few months has been a great joy and true honor,” Feldstein wrote in a telling Instagram post. “Once the production decided to take the show in a different direction, I made the extremely difficult decision to step away sooner than anticipated.”
Broadway fanatics, theater critics, and former Gleeks quickly took to social media to share their thoughts on the casting decision, with some supporting Michele and others speculating on her backstage behavior following allegationsof her toxic attitude on the Glee set. (Notably, Jane Lynch, who played Sue Sylvester opposite Michele on Glee and now plays Rosie Brice in the current Funny Girl revival, is ending her run early, too, days before Michele is set to take over as Fanny.)
Michele did not address the controversy, but rather happily celebrated her accomplishment in an Instagram post. “A dream come true is an understatement. I’m so incredibly honored to join this amazing cast and production and return to the stage playing Fanny Brice on Broadway. See you September 6th. @funnygirlbwy #FUNNYGIRL,” she wrote.
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