With just a few weeks remaining in its New York run before it heads out on national tour, the Broadway revival of “Funny Girl” has once again managed to create controversy through a casting decision, this time resulting from casting a lead performer who is not of Jewish heritage.
When the production originated in London in 2016, the role of Fanny Brice, the early 20th century Jewish comedienne (forever associated with Barbra Streisand’s original performance), was played by Sheridan Smith, an English actress who received much acclaim for her performance (which was even filmed) but who was unmistakably not Jewish.
When the production opened on Broadway in the spring on 2022, the role of Brice went to Beanie Feldstein, who had previously appeared on Broadway in a small role in “Hello, Dolly!” and in films such as “Lady Bird” and “Booksmart.”
Feldstein’s casting choice was unexpected and intriguing, and many noted the significance of having a Jewish performer such as Feldstein playing Brice. Unfortunately, it quickly became apparent that Feldstein did not have the vocal abilities to handle the titanic role, leading to utter bewilderment over how the show’s producers wound up casting Feldstein in the first place.
By the end of July of 2022, Feldstein was gone, and a few weeks later, Lea Michele took over as Brice. Michele, who was born half-Jewish, was an obvious fit for the role – and had even played the role in a fictional Broadway revival of “Funny Girl” on “Glee.” But Michele’s casting still caused controversy.
In 2020, Michele became the subject of significant backlash on social media for her allegedly bullying and insensitive behavior on the set of “Glee.” As such, many questioned whether Michele should be welcomed back to Broadway, where she co-starred in the musical “Spring Awakening” prior to “Glee.”
But Michele’s casting paid off big time, with critics hailing her for giving a tremendous performance and the box office rising significantly, turning the revival into a bona fide hit. (While I was not a fan of the production, and the musical itself is second-tier, Michele’s performance of the songs “I’m the Greatest Star” and “Don’t Rain on My Parade” is sensational.) The production will end its Broadway run once her run ends, without trying to recast the role.
However, the question remained of who would play Brice in the revival’s upcoming national tour. In an ideal world, Julie Benko, who was the standby for Brice on Broadway (and who regularly played the role), would have taken over herself, but Benko is instead going into the Broadway-bound musical “Harmony.”
Last week, the show’s producers announced that Katerina McCrimmon, who is originally from Miami and of Hispanic heritage, would play Brice on tour. Controversy has now ensued over the fact that McCrimmon is not Jewish. One imagines that the producers were fully aware of the likelihood of this being an issue and cast McCrimmon anyway, which suggests that McCrimmon must have given an extraordinary audition.
The situation feels somewhat reminiscent of the criticism that arose two decades ago when “Fiddler on the Roof” was revived on Broadway with Alfred Molina as Tevye, which was described by the Off-Broadway spoof “Forbidden Broadway” as “a ‘Fiddler’ with no Jew.” Molina was subsequently replaced by Harvey Fierstein, who is Jewish.
For a clear perspective on the issue, I recommend a recent interview in the industry publication Broadway News with Tony-winning songwriter Jason Robert Brown about the current Broadway revival of “Parade,” in which Leo and Lucille Frank (who, like Brice, are real-life Jewish figures) are played respectively by Ben Platt and Micaela Diamond, who are Jewish.
“No, I don’t need a Jewish actor to play a Jewish role. I’ll buy it on a lot of levels. But there is something enormously powerful about a Jewish actor playing a Jewish role,” Brown said. Acknowledging that the late Brent Carver, who played Leo in the original Broadway production, was not Jewish, Brown said “it didn’t make his portrayal less good, and it didn’t mean he wasn’t the most talented performer in the world, but I could tell the difference in authenticity.”
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