Ryoko Yonekura Will No Longer Return to CHICAGO in November Due to Injury

Ryoko Yonekura has withdrawn from her previously announced engagement in Chicago, which she was scheduled to perform on Broadway from November 7th thru November 20th, under doctor's orders due to a lower back injury. Replacement casting will be announced shortly.

The upcoming Japan tour will be presented as scheduled in Tokyo (December 14-31, 2022 at the Tokyo International Forum Hall C) but without Ryoko Yonekura. The tour will feature principals from the West End and cast members whom continue to tour worldwide.

Ryoko Yonekura trained in classical ballet as a child and modeled before making her acting debut. She has had an extensive career since and starred in various films, TV and theatre productions, receiving multiple accolades. Between 2012 and 2021 Yonekura starred as Surgeon Michiko Daimon in the Japanese blockbuster TV series "Doctor X." Her works including "The Journalist" (Netflix) are distributed worldwide and she continues to be one of the most sought-after actresses in Japan.

The current cast of Chicago features Angelica Ross as Roxie Hart, Amra Faye-Wright as Velma Kelly, Brandon Victor Dixon as Billy Flynn, Tony Award-winner Charity Angel Dawson as Matron "Mama" Morton, Evan Harrington as Amos Hart and R. Lowe as Mary Sunshine. The cast also includes David Bushman, Jennifer Dunne, Jessica Ernest, Jeff Gorti, Arian Keddell, Mary Claire King, Joseph London, Barrett Martin, Sharon Moore, Drew Nellessen, Celina Nightengale, Brian O'Brien, Denny Paschall, Jermaine R. Rembert, Rachel Shur, Michael Scirrotto, Christine Cornish Smith and Brian Spitulnik. Chicago is now on-sale thru April of 2023.

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.