Julie Benko Joins the Cast of Barry Manilow & Bruce Sussman's HARMONY on Broadway

Julie Benko is set to join the company of Harmony, the new musical by Barry Manilow and Bruce Sussman, playing the role of “Ruth”. The production will begin previews at Broadway’s Barrymore Theatre (243 W 47th St.) on Wednesday, October 18, ahead of an official Opening Night on Monday, November 13.

Julie Benko makes the leap to originating her first role on Broadway from her current breakout acclaimed performance as alternate for Fanny Brice in the Broadway hit musical revival of Funny Girl. She is the recipient of the 2023 Theatre World Dorothy Loudon Award for Excellence in the Theatre which will be presented on June 5th.

Benko says, “It is rare to be offered the chance to be part of a Broadway show that resonates so deeply on both personal and political levels. I’m so proud to be a part of Harmony and tremendously grateful to Barry, Bruce, Warren, Ken, and the entire team for entrusting me with Ruth’s story. I can’t wait to get into the rehearsal room with the brilliant company this Fall.”

Tickets are now on sale starting at $59 via www.telecharge.com, or by calling (800) 447 7400 or (212) 239-6200.

Benko joins the previously announced Chip Zien, who stars as “Rabbi,” along with the six Comedian Harmonists Sean Bell, Danny Kornfeld, Zal Owen, Eric Peters, Blake Roman and Steven Telsey. Further casting and additional news about Harmony will be announced in the coming weeks.

Harmony features an original new score by legendary Tony, Grammy, and Emmy Award® winner Barry Manilow with lyrics and book by Drama Desk Award Winner, Bruce Sussman. Directed and choreographed by Tony Award winner Warren Carlyle (The Music Man, Hello Dolly!), this timely and captivating rags-to-riches story lost to history comes to dazzling life with a sensational cast of Broadway favorites.

Based on the unbelievable true story, Harmony tells the tale of the most successful entertainers you've never heard of. . . . until now. In the 1920s and 30s, The Comedian Harmonists sold millions of records, made dozens of films, and sold out the biggest theaters around the world.  Their heavenly harmonies and musical comedy antics catapulted these six talented young men from singing in the subway tunnels of Berlin to international superstardom.

What happened next is the story of Harmony.

Harmony is based in part on The Comedian Harmonist Archive as curated by the late Dr. Peter Czada.

A New York Times Critic’s Pick, the musical received a 2002 Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Musical and an award for Outstanding Best Book of a Musical and the Off-Broadway Alliance’s Best New Musical for 2022. It also received eight 2022-2023 Outer Critics Circle Award nominations including Outstanding New Off-Broadway Musical and two 2022-2023 Lucille Lortel Award nominations including Outstanding Musical.

Harmony comes to Broadway following a sold-out award-winning run last spring at the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene (Artistic Director, Zalmen Mlotek and Executive Director, Dominick Balletta).

Ken Davenport, Sandi Moran, and Garry Kief are producers of the show joined by
Hunter Arnold, Marco Santarelli, Jonathan and Rae Corr, Adam Riemer, Scott
Abrams, Neil Gooding Productions, Patty Baker, Tom and Michael D’Angora, Susan DuBow, Michelle Kaplan, Steve Kyriakis & Matt Donaldson, Harold Matzner, Matthew Rosenthal, Paul Gavriani, Burba Hayes, Harvey & Sandy Platt and Amuse, Inc, and Addiss Keena.  Harmony is produced in association with Wilfried Rimensberger and Stiletto Entertainment. 

Julie Benko (Ruth) is currently marching her band out on Broadway, where you can catch her as the alternate for Fanny Brice in Funny Girl on Thursday evenings. For her performance, she was named the 2022 Breakout Star for Theater in the New York Times, honored as one of 40 Under 40 for Crain's New York Business, hailed by CBS Mornings as "Broadway's breakout star,” and received the 2023 Theatre World Dorothy Loudon Award for Excellence in the Theatre. Other Broadway and touring credits include Fiddler on the Roof, Les Misérables, and Spring Awakening. Of her numerous off-Broadway and regional appearances, favorites include Once (Wilde Award, Best Actress in a Musical), The Fantasticks, Our Town, Bar Mitzvah Boy, Rags, The Golem of Havana, and …Spelling Bee at such venues as Barrington Stage, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, Weston Playhouse, York Theatre Company, and many more. Her new record "Hand in Hand” (Club44 Records), an award-winning duo effort with her jazz-pianist spouse Jason Yeager, and debut album "Introducing Julie Benko" are available wherever music is streaming. She holds a BFA in Drama and an MFA in Acting from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. Visit her website, www.JulieBenko.com, or follow her on Tikok/Instagram @Jujujuliebee to discover more.