Following the news that the Broadway revival of Funny Girl has recouped its initial investment, the tour of the hit production has announced its complete cast. The tour is scheduled to begin with a September 9-16 run at Providence Performing Arts Center in Providence, Rhode Island, with more than 30 cities set to follow.
As previously reported, the company will be led by newcomer Katerina McCrimmon (The Light in the Piazza at New York City Center Encores!) as Fanny Brice, Grammy-winning "Don't Cry Out Loud"
singer Melissa Manchester, who starred in the national tour of Andrew
Lloyd Webber's Song and Dance, as Mrs. Brice, Stephen Mark Lukas as Nick Arnstein, Izaiah Montaque Harris as
Eddie Ryan, Walter Coppage as Florenz Ziegfeld, Leah Platt as Emma
and Mrs. Nadler, Christine Bunuan as Mrs. Meeker, Eileen T’Kaye as Mrs.
Strakosh, and David Foley Jr. as Tom Keeney.
Newly announced for the production are ensemble members Vinny Andaloro, Lamont Brown, Kate E. Cook, Julia Grondin, Jackson Grove, Jorge Guerra, Dot Kelly, Alex Hartman, Ryan Lambert, Kathy Liu, Zoey Lytle, Meghan Manning, Bryan Charles Moore, Sami Murphy, Hannah Shankman, Jordon Taylor, Sean Thompson, and Annaliese Wilbur.
“Fans have adored Melissa throughout her 50-year musical career, and Katerina is a star in the making who embodies the rising stardom of Fanny," said production director Michael Mayer in an earlier statement. "We could not be more thrilled to have this dynamic and talented duo lead the Funny Girl tour."
Funny Girl, which premiered on Broadway in 1964, features a score by Jule Styne and Bob Merrill and a book by Isobel Lennart, newly adapted by Tony winner Harvey Fierstein for this revival. The original production propelled a young Barbra Streisand to international fame; she would reprise her stage performance in the 1968 film adaptation, winning an Academy Award and a Golden Globe in the process. The biomusical tracks real-life singer and comic Fanny Brice from her humble beginnings in Brooklyn, New York, to fame and fortune onstage in the Ziegfeld Follies and as a radio and screen performer.
The production, which opened on Broadway April 24, 2022, at the
August Wilson Theatre, is directed by Mayer with choreography by
Ellenore Scott and tap choreography by Ayodele Casel. Much of the
Broadway creative team will reprise their work for the tour,
including music supervisor Michael Rafter, scenic desiger David Zinn,
costume designer Susan Hilferty, lighting designer Kevin Adams, sound
designer Brian Ronan, and hair designer Campbell Young Associates.
Joining the creative team are music director Elaine Davidson and
co-sound designer Cody Spencer. Casting is by Jim Carnahan and Jason
Thinger. The production also includes orchestrations by Chris Walker;
dance, vocal, and incidental music arrangements by Alan Williams; and
additional arrangements by Carmel Dean and David Dabbon.
The touring stage management team will include production stage manager Jovon Shuck, stage manager Stacey Taylor, and assistant stage manager Mariah Young.
Funny Girl's national tour is being produced by NETworks Presentations in special arrangement with Sonia Friedman Productions, Scott Landis, and David Babani.
See the full touring itinerary at FunnyGirlOnBroadway.com.
