The ‘Funny Girl’ Casting Decision - The Good and The Bad

After weeks of rumors and everything under the sun but a confirmation, the news was finally announced that Lea Michele will be taking over the role of Fanny Brice on Broadway. Needless to say, there has been a lot of chatter about this on social media.

I have some very specific opinions about this news, some of it is publishable and some of it is not. But I will say this, regardless of how I feel about Lea Michele or the producers of this production, the way that the situation was handled was an absolute disaster and should never happen again.

So is there any positive way to look at this news? Or is it all just absolute trash? Let’s break it down.

The Good

There are a couple of positive things to take from the situation. The first is that Lea Michele‘s friends have a Broadway show they can get comps to.

And, if we’re being honest, her involvement may generate new interest in the show which will then ensure employment for dozens of other people for a longer period of time.

That being said, we also must take a moment to praise Beanie Feldstein. She has been an absolute class act throughout all of this and I don’t blame her for anything that has happened in the past 24 hours. If I had been told that they wanted to end my run three weeks earlier than planned, I would’ve done exactly what she did too.

The failures of Funny Girl are not squarely because of her. I would also say that she wasn’t nearly the biggest problem with the production. Was she the right person for this role? That’s debatable. But from what I’ve heard from those working on the show, she’s been an absolute delight to work with, gave everything she had to this part, and supported everyone else on the production.

If this terrible situation leads to more amazing things for her and generates an entire legion of new fans, I’m only happy for her. I just hope she comes back to Broadway sooner than later.

Now let’s get to the bad.

The Bad

Other than having a better singing voice, I’m not sure what Lea Michele brings to this role that Beanie Feldstein didn’t. I’m not exactly sure if anything is gained from having her in this role.

I’m also a bit confused as to why she would even want to be put in the situation right now either. Most importantly, I’m alarmed at the fact that once again this shows that nothing has changed within the Broadway power structure. After years of members in this community and fans telling producers not to give problematic people opportunities, this happens.

As we all know, Lea Michele was accused of some pretty horrific behavior on multiple projects including ‘Glee’ and ‘Spring Awakening’. She technically apologized for her behavior without addressing what behavior she was apologizing for. Yet, Broadway powers-that-be were so quick to get her back on Broadway as soon as possible. If this isn’t a sign that nothing much has changed on Broadway, I don’t know what is.

I feel as though I’m watching a “Karen” win a Nobel peace prize.

Has Lea Michele changed her ways? She hasn’t been doing much lately, so maybe? One can only hope that’s happened, because I want the other cast members and employees of that production to be able to work for as long as possible.

I also want them to feel that they’re working in a safe and encouraging environment. So I want this to succeed. What kills me is that there were probably so many other options and routes to go, and they chose this.

So we will certainly see how this all unfolds in September. In the meantime, I highly encourage you to get tickets for the show before Lea Michele steps into the role because you’ll get a chance to see Julie Benko as Fanny, and she is absolutely incredible.

Needless to say, Lea Michele has huge shoes to fill on both a performing and professional level.