CHICAGO Comes to Canberra in September

The acclaimed production of one of Australia’s favourite musicals,CHICAGO, will open in Canberra in September this year, the first time a professional production of this Broadway favourite has played in Australia’s capital city. Presales begin today and general public tickets are on sale from Friday 19 April.

The longest-running show currently playing on Broadway, this scorching hot masterpiece includes a dazzling score that includes All That Jazz, Cell Block Tango and Razzle Dazzle. Created by the musical theatre talents of John Kander, Fred Ebb and legendary choreographer Bob Fosse, it’s no wonderCHICAGO has been honoured with six Tony Awards®, two Olivier Awards, and a Grammy®.

The cast has been assembled for CHICAGO. One of Australian theatre’s greatest leading men, Anthony Warlow (The Phantom of the Opera), has stepped into the shoes of the cunning and charismatic lawyer Billy Flynn. Returning to the stage to play the powerful and glamorous Velma Kelly is one of Australia’s favourite actors, Zoë Ventoura (Packed to the Rafters). Joining her as the irreverent and determined Roxie Hart is in-demand musical theatre starLucy Maunder (Mary Poppins). As Roxie’s gullible and hapless husband, Amos, is much-loved comedy icon and character actor Peter Rowsthorn. Following her star turn as Motormouth Maybelle in Hairspray, Asabi Goodman plays the tough and sassy prison warden Matron ‘Mama’ Morton.

S. Valeri features as the soft-hearted crime reporter Mary Sunshine, while the talented group of ensemble and swings include Hayden Baum, Devon Braithwaite, Olivia Carniato, Angelique Cassimatis, Louis Fontaine, Chaska Halliday, Sarah Heath, Matthew Jenson, Ethan Jones, Savannah Lind, Kristina McNamara, Tom New, Nathan Pinnell, Rania Potaka-Osborne and Romina Villafranca.

“The sharpest, slickest show on the block” (The Times UK) is currently playing at Her Majesty’s Theatre, Melbourne to capacity audiences and critical acclaim, following sell out seasons in Perth and Brisbane. CHICAGO transfers to Sydney’s Capitol Theatre from 9 June and the Festival Theatre, Adelaide from 4 August.

“I’m thrilled to add Canberra to the national tour of our new production of CHICAGO,” said producer John Frost. “CHICAGO has everything that people love about a Broadway musical - a story of fame, fortune and all that jazz, one show-stopping number after another and the most amazing dancing you’ve ever seen. Come along and enjoy the razzle dazzle of this New York institution.”

“The Canberra community and broader region regularly come out in force for a visiting musical, from Mamma Mia, to Come from Away, and now CHICAGO. As a major tourism drawcard, it provides an experience for our outstanding tourism, arts and hospitality sectors to leverage from,” said Minister for the Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy Tara Cheyne.

“With the Canberra Theatre Centre and Crossroads Live bringing a show of this size and calibre to our city, I'm excited for the opportunities it will provide, from economic impact to visitation, and especially in how it will be used to further elevate the profile of our local arts scene.”

Set amidst the 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 Billy Flynn 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.

CHICAGO, which is based on the 1926 play by Maurine Dallas Watkins, has a legendary book by Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse, music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb. The 1996 Broadway revival of CHICAGO is choreographed by Tony Award winner Ann Reinking in the style of Bob Fosse and is directed by Tony Award winner Walter Bobbie. CHICAGO features set design by John Lee Beatty, costume design by William Ivey Long, lighting design by Tony Award winner Ken Billington and sound design by Scott Lehrer.

Murder, greed, corruption, exploitation, adultery, treachery… and All That Jazz. What else could you desire in a musical? The original and the best, CHICAGOis back. It would be a crime to miss it!

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