Paulo Szot Will Join The Broadway Cast Of CHICAGO

Tony Award-winner and opera star Paulo Szot will join the Broadway production of Chicago in the role of "Billy Flynn" at the Ambassador Theatre (219 W. 49th St.).

Mr. Szot makes his debut in the show the same evening as singer, actress and TV sensation Erika Jayne, Broadway's next "Roxie Hart," on Monday, January 6th for a four-week run through January 31st. He returns to the company for a nine-week run, March 16th to May 19th.

Paulo Szot made his Broadway debut as Emile de Becque in Lincoln Center Theater's South Pacific in 2008 and won a Tony Award, a Drama Desk Award, an Outer Critics Circle Award and a Theatre World Award for his performance. He has performed at the Metropolitan Opera, Scala di Milano, Paris Opera, Teatro Real (Madrid), Barbican and SouthBank Center (London), Carnegie Hall, NYPhil, NY Pops. Recent roles include Higgins in My Fair Lady (São Paulo), Peron in Evita (Sydney & Melbourne), Escamillo in Carmen (Munich), Almaviva in Marriage of Figaro (Aix-en-Provence), Germont in Traviata (São Paulo), Don Giovanni (Washington), Onegin (Melbourne). This season: Sharpless in Madama Butterfly (Metropolitan Opera), The Celebrant in Bernstein's Mass (Ravinia), Danilo in Merry Widow (Rome). His upcoming appearances include Street Scene (Monte Carlo), Cosi fan Tutte (Paris), Chicago (São Paulo).

Erika Jayne and Paulo Szot will be joined on stage by veteran Chicago cast members by Amra-Faye Wright as Velma Kelly, Raymond Bokhour as Amos Hart, NaTasha Yvette Williams as Matron "Mama" Morton, and R. Lowe as Mary Sunshine.

With a legendary book by Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse, music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb, Chicago is now the #1 longest-running American musical in Broadway history.

Produced by Barry and Fran Weissler, Chicago is the winner of six 1997 Tony Awards including Best Musical Revival and the Grammy Award for Best Musical Cast Recording.

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, sound design by Scott Lehrer and casting by Stewart/Whitley.

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.

Tickets for Chicago are available through Telecharge.com, by calling 212-239-6200, and in-person at the Ambassador Theatre (219 W. 49th St.; New York, NY) box office. Regular box office hours are 10 am to 8 pm Monday through Saturday, and Noon to 7:00 pm Sunday.