On Friday, March 25, 2011, the internationally acclaimed revival of John Kander, Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse's Tony Award-winning musical CHICAGO reached another major milestone when it became the fifth-longest running production in Broadway history, surpassing Oh! Calcutta with a total of 5,960 performances!
As of that date, the Broadway's top-five longest-running productions of all time are as follows:
1. The Phantom of the Opera (9,633)
2. Cats (7,485)
3. Les Miserables (6,680)
4. A Chorus Line (6,137)
5. Chicago (5,960)
The revival of CHICAGO began its journey to becoming an international, billion-dollar stage success in the summer of 1996. After its celebrated rediscovery at City Center Encores!, the production opened to rave reviews on Broadway at the Richard Rodgers Theatre on November 14, 1996, with a phenomenal cast headlined by Tony Award winner Ann Reinking as Roxie Hart, Tony Award winner Bebe Neuwirth as Velma Kelly, Tony Award winner James Naughton as Billy Flynn, Tony Award winner Joel Grey as Amos Hart and Tony Award nominee Marcia Lewis as Matron "Mama" Morton.
CHICAGO then transferred to the Shubert Theatre on February 11, 1997. Nearly six years later, on January 29, 2003, it transferred a second time to its current Broadway home, the Ambassador Theatre (219 W. 49th St.).
The Broadway production now stars Bianca Marroquin as Roxie Hart, original revival cast member Leigh Zimmerman as Velma Kelly, Jeff McCarthy as Billy Flynn, Raymond Bokhour as Amos Hart and Roz Ryan as Matron "Mama" Morton.
As previously announced, world-renowned supermodel Christie Brinkley will make her Broadway debut as Roxie Hart in an 11-week engagement beginning Monday, April 4. She will be joined by longtime CHICAGO veteran and fan-favorite Amra-Faye Wright as Velma Kelly. (Leigh Zimmerman plays her final performance on Sunday, April 3.)
With a legendary book by Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse, music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb, CHICAGO is the winner of six 1997 Tony Awards including Best Musical Revival and the Grammy Award for Best Musical Cast Recording.
Set amidst the razzle-dazzle decadence of the 1920s, CHICAGO is the story of Roxie Hart, a housewife and nightclub dancer who murders her on-the-side lover after he threatens to walk out on her. Desperate to avoid conviction, she dupes the public, the media and her rival cellmate, Velma Kelly, by hiring Chicago's slickest criminal lawyer to transform her malicious crime into a barrage of sensational headlines, the likes of which might just as easily be ripped from today's tabloids.
Directed by Tony Award winner Walter Bobbie and choreographed by Tony Award winner Ann Reinking, CHICAGO features set design by John Lee Beatty, costume design by Tony Award winner William Ivey Long, lighting design by Tony Award winner Ken Billington and sound design by Scott Lehrer.
Visit www.ChicagoTheMusical.com for more information.
Photo Credit: Kevin Thomas Garcia
Roz Ryan, Bianca Marroquin, Leigh Zimmerman, Jeff McCarthy and Raymond Bokhour
Bianca Marroquin, Leigh Zimmerman, Barry Weissler and Jeff McCarthy
Roz Ryan, Bianca Marroquin, Leigh Zimmerman, Barry Weissler, Jeff McCarthy and Raymond Bokhour
Christie Brinkley and Barry Weissler
Roz Ryan, Bianca Marroquin, Christie Brinkley, Leigh Zimmerman and Jeff McCarthy
Bianca Marroquin, Roz Ryan and Christie Brinkley
