Bruce Glikas
Life in the theater is coming to an end for the Funny Girl company. The Broadway revival has extended its run, but the show will have its final performance on Sunday, September 3, 2023.
Its graduation date is almost exactly a year after Michele joined the cast, although the “Funny Girl” revival first opened in April 2022, helmed by Beanie Feldstein as Fanny Brice. But she and Jane Lynch, who was replaced by Tovah Feldshuh as Fanny’s mother, left production in August after the production was plagued by poor reviews and lackluster turnout.
Funny Girl might have closed earlier without the casting changes. But box office fortunes have been on the upswing since last September, and seating at the August Wilson Theater is well filled, even setting several house records. By the time the cast, including Ramin Karimloo as Nicky Arnstein and Jared Grimes as Eddie Ryan, make their final bow, the Broadway revival will have played 599 performances and 30 previews.
As previously announced, Funny Girl will tour in September, beginning in Providence, RI before traveling to more than 30 North American cities.
Funny Girl follows Brice on her unlikely rise to fame and her tumultuous relationship with gamer Nicky Arnstein. The musical features theater classics such as Don’t Rain on My Parade, I’m the Greatest Star and People. In a unique arrangement, Julie Benko, who has become a fan favorite at the August Wilson Theater, plays the role of Fanny Brice every Thursday and while Michele is away.
The musical debuted on Broadway in 1964, starring Barbra Streisand, and received multiple Tony nominations. The revival marks the first time in 58 years that “Funny Girl” has returned to the Great White Way.
Michele certainly had tough shoes to fill, but critics have compared her performance favorably to Streisand’s stardom. In Variety’s review, Frank Rizzo wrote, “Michele is able to distance herself enough from Streisand’s phrasing to take ownership of the material — or at least become an accomplished janitor.”