The Cher Show, starring Stephanie J. Block, begins performances on Broadway

An official opening for the new jukebox musical based on the life and career of Cher is set for December 3 at Broadway's Neil Simon Theatre.

Believe, folks! It's finally here... The Broadway premiere of The Cher Show, directed by Tony Award nominee Jason Moore, begins previews at the Neil Simon Theatre tonight, ahead of an official opening on December 3, 2018.

Featuring Cher's greatest hits (including "I Got You Babe," "Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves," "Take Me Home," "Believe," "If I Could Turn Back Time," and many more) and a book by three-time Tony Award nominee Rick Elice, The Cher Show is choreographed by Tony Award winner Christopher Gattelli and features orchestrations, arrangements and musical supervision by Tony Award winner Daryl Waters.

Synopsis: "The Cher Show is based on the life of Cherilyn Sarkisian La Piere Bono Allman or as her friends call her, Cher! The kid on a tricycle, vowing to be famous. The teenage phenom who crashes by twenty. The glam TV star who quits at the top. The would-be actress with an Oscar. The rock goddess with a hundred million records sold. The legend who's done it all, still scared to walk on stage. The wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend. The woman, looking for love. The ultimate survivor, chasing her dream. They're all here, dressed to kill, singing their asses off, telling it like it is. And they're all the star of The Cher Show."

The cast includes two-time Tony Award nominee Stephanie J. Block, Broadway alum Teal Wicks and newcomer Micaela Diamond (all portraying Cher at various stages of her career), alongside Tony Award nominee Jarrod Spector (as Sonny Bono), Tony Award nominee Michael Berresse (as Bob Mackie), Michael Campayno (as Rob Camilletti), Matthew Hydzik (as Gregg Allman), and Tony Award nominee Emily Skinner (as Georgia Holt). The ensemble features Marija Abney, Carleigh Bettiol, Taurean Everett, Michael Fatica, Ashley Blair Fitzgerald, Michael Graceffa, Blaine Alden Krauss, Sam Lips, Allie Meixner, Tiana Okoye, Amy Quanbeck, Angel Reda, Dee Roscioli, Michael Tacconi, Tory Trowbridge, Christopher Vo, Alena Watters, Charlie Williams, and Ryan Worsing.

The creative team also features legendary costume designer and longtime Cher collaborator Bob Mackie, as well as scenic design by Tony Award winner Christine Jones and Brett Banakis, lighting design by Kevin Adams, sound design by Nevin Steinberg, and video design by Darrel Maloney.

Cher's life certainly has enough drama to fill a bio-musical, charting her rise from a backup singer in Los Angeles where she met Sonny Bono in 1962 and created "The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour". Their marriage ended in divorce in 1975 and Cher went on to prove her solo status as a singer and an actress. She appeared on Broadway in the 1982 production of Come Back to the 5 and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean, before crossing over to Hollywood with films such as "Silkwood" and "Moonstruck," for which she won an Oscar in 1988.

Stephanie J. Block earned Tony Award nominations for her performances in Falsettos and The Mystery of Edwin Drood, in 2017 and 2013, respectively. She has also appeared on Broadway with roles in Anything Goes, Wicked, The Pirate Queen, 9 to 5 and The Boy From Oz, and she was most recently seen as Patricia Saunders in the TV series "Rise" on NBC.

Teal Wicks has previously starred on Broadway as Elphaba in Wicked in 2011, Emma Carew in the 2013 revival of Jekyll & Hyde, and as Mary Barrie in the 2015 Broadway premiere of Finding Neverland. Micaela Diamond officially makes her Broadway debut with The Cher Show. 

The pre-Broadway world premiere of The Cher Show was staged this past summer at Chicago's Oriental Theatre from June 12 to July 15, 2018.

The Cher Show is produced on Broadway by Flody Suarez and Jeffrey Seller.

The Cher Show Tickets are available now for performances through to May 26, 2019.

^{(Photo by Joan Marcus)}