Lea Michele and the Cast of Funny Girl Will Perform in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
Lea Michele's return to Broadway is here; she officially took over the role of Fanny Brice in Funny Girl beginning September 6.
While this is Michele's first time performing as Fanny on Broadway, her Glee character, Rachel Berry, was cast in the fictional revival of Funny Girl in the Glee universe. Michele-as-Berry performed numbers from the musical, including "Don't Rain on My Parade" and "I'm the Greatest Star."
Michele took over the role of Fanny Brice from Beanie Feldstein (who departed early), and Feldstein's understudy, Julie Benko, who has been performing as Fanny all month, will stay on to perform on Thursdays.
"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," Michele wrote on Instagram following the announcement of her casting. Her predecessor, Feldstein, also called the role a "lifelong dream." Yet, she left on a somewhat sour note, writing, "Once the production decided to take the show in a different direction, I made the extremely difficult decision to step away sooner than anticipated.
The actress, and the rest of the Funny Girl cast, will be part of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, and hopefully they will perform "Don't Rain on My Parade." While we wait for that performance, here, see the best clips of Michele performing as Fanny Brice:
"I'm the Greatest Star"
Ahead of Michele's debut, the production shared on their social media accounts Michele singing "I'm the Greatest Star."
Touted as "a star returns" and "the role of a lifetime," the collection of clips show Michele rehearsing with various cast members—including Tovah Feldshuh, set to take over the role of Mrs. Brice—and practicing the choreography for the show. Funny Girl marks her return to Broadway since she appeared as Wendla in Spring Awakening in the mid-2000s.
"People"
As part of promo for Funny Girl, Michele went on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon to talk about the show, and to perform a number on late night.
You can also watch her interview with Jimmy here.
You Might Also Like
