Bette Midler Led HELLO, DOLLY! Update - Auditions Set, Find Out What's Cast and What They're Seeking

There's a new Dolly coming to town and today we've got the scoop on auditions to star alongside the legend via an Equity Casting Notice, available here.

As BroadwayWorld reported earlier this month, Bette Midler will indeed return to Broadway in one of the most cherished shows in musical theater history when she takes on the role of Dolly Gallagher Levi in Hello, Dolly!

Auditions are set for February, and here's who's cast, and what they're looking for. Think you've got what it takes? Check out Equity's full notice here.

SEEKING:

HORACE VANDERGELDER
Male, to play 50s - 60s, any ethnicity. The proprietor of a Hay & Feed store and a client of Dolly. A well-known half-a-millionaire, he's a widower, gruff, set in his ways, and authoritative. Baritone.

CORNELIUS HACKL
Role CAST. Seeking understudy only.
Male, to play 30 - 40, any ethnicity. Vandergelder's chief clerk who yearns for one exciting day in NYC. Energetic, enthusiastic, and adventurous, he has a sweet innocence about him. He seeks the company of Irene. Baritone with robust sound.

BARNABY TUCKER
Male, to play 18 - 22, any ethnicity. An assistant to Cornelius at Vandergelder's Hay & Feed store. He's sweet, naïve, energized, and a follower. Strong dancer. Baritone.

IRENE MOLLOY
Female, to play 30 - 40, any ethnicity. A widow, she's a beautiful, smart, fun-loving milliner with a hat shop in NYC. Dolly has introduced her to Vandergelder, but she yearns for romance. Mezzo.

MINNIE FAY
Female, to play 18 - 22, any ethnicity. A young girl who works as Irene's assistant in the hat shop. She's naïve, straightlaced, fresh, and a follower. Strong dancer. Mezzo.

AMBROSE KEMPER
Male, to play 18 - 25, any ethnicity. A young and explosive struggling artist seeking to marry Ermengarde. Strong dancer. Tenor.

ERMENGARDE
Female, to play 18 - 22, any ethnicity. The young niece of Vandergelder. She cries often and wants her independence and to marry Ambrose. Strong dancer. Mezzo.

STANDBY FOR DOLLY GALLAGHER LEVI
Female, to play 50s - 60s, any ethnicity. A widow in her middle years who has decided to begin her life again. A matchmaker, meddler, opportunist, and life-loving woman. Commanding presence and comic chops. Mezzo with wide vocal range

This new production of Hello, Dolly!, the first new production of this classic musical to appear on Broadway since it opened more than fifty years ago, will have at its helm Jerry Zaks as its director, and will feature choreography by Tony Award-winner Warren Carlyle. The new Dolly! will pay tribute to the original work of legendary director/choreographer Gower Champion, which has been hailed both then and now as one of the greatest stagings in musical theater history

Based on Thornton Wilder's farce The Matchmaker, Hello, Dolly! caused an instant sensation when it premiered on Broadway in 1964, starring Carol Channing in the title role. It went on to win a record-shattering ten Tony Awards, including those for Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, Best Original Score, Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical, Best Direction of a Musical, Best Producer of a Musical, Best Choreography, Best Scenic Design, and Best Costume Design. It was also named Best Musical by the New York Drama Critics' Circle. Its original Broadway cast recording hit the top of the Billboard album chart, and years later was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. It also marked the greatest producing triumph of legendary impresario David Merrick, running for 2,844 performances over seven years and breaking the record for the longest running show in Broadway history. In addition to Ms. Channing, an astonishing list of Broadway and Hollywood luminaries have inhabited the role of Dolly Gallagher Levi, including Pearl Bailey, Phyllis Diller, Betty Grable, Martha Raye, Ginger Rogers, Ethel Merman (in her last appearance on Broadway), and Mary Martin, who led the West End company.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride / WM Photos