Lea Michele to star as Fanny Brice in Broadway’s 'Funny Girl'
Lea Michele is heading back to Broadway.
It was announced on Monday that the "Glee" veteran and lifelong Barbra Streisand fangirl will step into the former "Funny Girl's" shoes as Fanny Brice in the Broadway revival beginning Sept. 6.
"A dream come true is an understatement," Michele wrote on Instagram. "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."
It's not only a "dream come true," but a manifestation: Michele's character on "Glee," Rachel Berry, starred in a production of "Funny Girl" and performed multiple songs from the famous musical during the show's run.
The news comes as Beanie Feldstein, the show's current Fanny Brice, announced over the weekend that July 31 would be her last show after saying that producers were going "in a different direction" with the role. Feldstein was supposed to make her exit on Sept. 25.
"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 honor," Feldstein wrote in an 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."
She continued, "I will never forget this experience and from the bottom of my heart, I want to thank every single person who came to the August Wilson [Theatre] for the love and support you have shown me and our amazing cast and crew. The people I have had the great joy of bringing Funny Girl to life with every night, both on and off stage, are all remarkably talented and exceptional humans and I hope you continue to join them on Henry Street after I depart on July 31st."
In addition to Michele, it was also announced that veteran stage and screen actress Tovah Feldshuh would be replacing Jane Lynch as Fanny's mom. Feldsuh starts opposite Michele on Sept. 6.
Michele's former "Glee" co-star, Lynch, was also supposed to make her exit at the end of September.
