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Are you ready for all that jazz? Chicago has been going strong on Broadway for more than 25 years. Get Chicago tickets on New York Theatre Guide now.
The Chicago musical had its Broadway premiere in 1975, directed and choreographed by Bob Fosse and starring Gwen Verdon and Chita Rivera. That production ran for two years. New York City Center's Encores! program for seldom revived musicals mounted a brief concert production in 1996, which transferred to Broadway and is the very same production still running today.
The revival, directed by Walter Bobbie and choreographed by Ann Reinking in Fosse's style, is now the longest-running American Broadway show and longest-running revival in Broadway history. Chicago officially opened at the Richard Rodgers Theatre on November 14, 1996, and it has since moved to the Shubert Theatre and finally the Ambassador Theatre in January 2003.
Chicago on Broadway was nominated for eight Tony Awards in 1997. The show ultimately won six trophies, including Best Revival of a Musical, Best Choreography, and Best Direction of a Musical. The production's highly stylized costumes as well as its Fosse-inspired choreography have made the musical one of the most widely recognised Broadway shows worldwide.
A Chicago film adaptation was released in 2002, starring Renée Zellweger as Roxie Hart, Catherine Zeta-Jones as Velma Kelly, Richard Gere as Billy Flynn, Queen Latifah as Matron "Mama" Morton, and John C. Reilly as Amos Hart. The film went on to win the Oscar for Best Picture at the 75th Academy Awards, becoming the first movie musical to do so since Oliver! in 1968.
Chicago is based on a same-named 1926 play by journalist Maureen Dallas Watkins, who covered real-life trials like Roxie's and Velma's. The Chicago musical is about murder, greed, corruption, violence, exploitation, adultery, and treachery — and old-fashioned showbiz and razzle dazzle.
Housewife and aspiring vaudevillian Roxie Hart lands in jail for murdering her lover, and she quickly learns that making headlines is the only way to get acquitted. She and veteran vaudeville star Velma Kelly, a fellow murderess, vie for the attention of the press and a smooth-talking lawyer, Billy Flynn, in this satire of celebrity culture and the justice system.
Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse wrote the book for the Chicago musical, with Ebb also writing lyrics and John Kander composing the music.
Along with Cabaret, Chicago is often considered as one of the best pieces of musical theatre from the legendary songwriting duo Kander and Ebb. They won the the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album for Chicago, with a jazz-infused score including hits like "Cell Block Tango," "When You're Good to Mama," "Mr. Cellophane," and "Razzle Dazzle."
Chicago is recommended for ages 13 and up, as the show contains strong language and references to sex and crime.
There's nothing quite like experiencing this sizzling show and musical score live! Get Chicago tickets in New York now.
(Photos by Jeremy Daniel)Get tickets to Chicago on Broadway, or sign up to receive our latest news and show alerts.
2hr 30min (Inc. intermission).
October 23rd, 1996
Musicals, Broadway
September 14th, 2021
April 2nd, 2023
October 23rd, 1996
Ambassador Theatre
May be inappropriate for 12 and under. Children under the age of 4 are not permitted in the theatre.
By: John Kander, Fred Ebb, and Bob Fosse
Director: Walter Bobbie
Producer: Barry & Fran Weissler, Jujamcyn Theatres in association with Kordan Productions
Cast list: Charlotte d'Amboise (as Roxie Hart), Lana Gordon (as Velma Kelly), Jinkx Monsoon (as Matron "Mama" Morton), James T. Lane (as Billy Flynn), Evan Harrington (as Amos Hart), R. Lowe (as Mary Sunshine)
Design: John Lee Beatty
Lighting: Ken Billington
Costume: William Ivey Long
Choreography: Ann Reinking
Sound: Scott Lehrer
20 years old and she’s still got it, folks! With the 20th Anniversary of Chicago speedily approaching, I took a trip to Broadway’s Ambassador Theatre to witness that timeless story of murder, greed, corruption, violence, exploitation, adultery and treachery… and rest assured, I still hold it near and dear to my heart! Chicago is the second longest-running show in Broadway history, behind Andrew Lloyd Webber’s infamous Phantom, and still holds the record of being the longest-running musical...
The name on everybody's lips is gonna be... Olivia! Olivia Holt will make her Broadway debut in Chicago this spring, playing a limited engagement at the Ambassador Theatre from April 10 to June 4. Holt will star as Roxie Hart, a housewife-turned-murderess who battles fellow inmate Velma Kelly, a veteran vaudevillian, for the attention of the press in the hopes of getting acquitted — and getting famous. The current production of John Kander, Fred Ebb, and Bob Fosse's 1975 musical has played the...
When you're good to Mama, Mama's good to you! Jinkx Monsoon, who currently stars as Matron "Mama" Morton in Chicago on Broadway, has extended her run on the show. She will now play her final performance on March 26, two weeks after her originally scheduled departure on March 12. Monsoon will not perform March 13 or 14. "“The kids are saying ‘she ate,’ so I figured, I might as well have seconds," Monsoon said. "In all seriousness, playing for standing room only crowds throughout my run as Mama...
Chicago the musical doesn’t razzle-dazzle audiences with falling chandeliers, flying helicopters, or spinning turntables. The show does so with its score. In the current Broadway production, which has run since 1996, the orchestra literally takes center stage. That’s because the show’s hot, jazzy music is the real star. The secret to this musical’s record-breaking success — with over 10,000 performances, Chicago is the longest running American show on Broadway (and second longest running...
The category is: Broadway. From January 16, two-time RuPaul's Drag Race champion Jinkx Monsoon is trading Rusicals for musicals to make her Broadway debut in Chicago through March 12. But the theatre scene isn't new to Monsoon. She holds a BFA in theatre from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, and she's performed in multiple major musicals in that same city. Hairspray, Rent, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, and Spring Awakening are just a few of her high-profile musical credits (aside from her...
UPDATE: Chicago has set additional casting, with James T. Lane also joining the cast on January 16 as Billy Flynn. When you're good to Monsoon, Monsoon's good to you! Two-time RuPaul's Drag Race winner Jinkx Monsoon will make her Broadway debut in Chicago this winter. She will take on the role of Matron "Mama" Morton for eight weeks, from January 16 through March 12. "“To be making my Broadway debut, as my favorite role, in one of my favorite shows— that lifelong dream is coming true and then...
Pop, six, squish, uh-uh, Cicero, tickets! Chicago tickets are now on sale through October 1, 2023. Get Chicago Broadway tickets now. Chicago follows housewife-turned-murderess Roxie Hart, whose crimes make her a local celebrity thanks to her smooth-talking lawyer, Billy Flynn. She competes with vaudeville star Velma Kelly, also in prison, for the attention and sympathy of Billy and the press, in the hopes of getting acquitted. This Chicago production is a revival, following the original Broadway...
They're bringing all that jazz! Chicago has set new casting from November 7, which includes Broadway veterans Charlotte d'Amboise and Ryan Silverman, and Isaac Mizrahi in his Broadway debut. Mizrahi, best known for his talk show The Isaac Mizrahi Show and his seven-season stint as a Project Runway: All-Stars judge, will step into the role of Amos Hart for three weeks. d'Amboise returns the role of Roxie Hart, who she has played on Broadway multiple times since 1999; and Ryan Silverman will play...
They're bringing the ol' razzle dazzle! Beginning September 12, Brandon Victor Dixon and Amra-Faye Wright will step into Chicago on Broadway. They join the previously announced Angelica Ross (Pose), who will become the first openly transgender woman to play a leading role on Broadway as Roxie Hart.Dixon will play Billy Flynn. He is a two-time Tony nominee for Shuffle Along and The Color Purple on Broadway, and he last starred off Broadway in Black No More earlier this year. Wright returns to the...
The name on everybody's lips is gonna be... Angelica! Pose star Angelica Ross is set to make her Broadway debut in Chicago on Broadway. She steps into the show at the Ambassador Theatre for eight weeks, from September 12 to November 6.Ross is best known for her role as Candy on the Netflix series Pose, which made history by featuring the largest transgender cast ever on a scripted TV show. Now, Ross herself makes history as the first openly transgender woman to play a leading role in a Broadway...
UPDATE: Yonekura has canceled her planned engagement in Chicago on Broadway. The name on everybody's lips is gonna be Ryoko — again! Japanese actress Ryoko Yonekura will star in Chicago on Broadway for 16 performances in November. She will play Roxie Hart from November 7-20.Yonekura first played the role of Roxie in the first Japanese production of Chicago in 2008. In 2012, she played the role on Broadway for the first time, later returning for limited engagements in 2017 and 2019. Yonekura is...
Erich Bergen is giving the old razzle dazzle! The stage and screen star will step into the role of Billy Flynn in Chicago on Broadway from August 1 to September 11. He replaces Ryan Silverman, who will depart the show on July 31.On screen, Bergen is best known as Blake Moran on Madam Secretary, as ADA Robert Jones in BULL, and as Bob Gaudio in the film adaptation of the Jersey Boys musical. He also performed in Jersey Boys on tour and was most recently on Broadway in the encore engagement of...
Roxie Hart and Velma Kelly may sing that "nothing stays — in 50 years or so, it's gonna change, you know," but 25 years into the musical's Broadway revival, Chicago has stayed around pretty darn long and shows no signs of stopping. In fact, Chicago and some of the show's cast members hold records for their longevity. There's a Guinness World Record-holding actor who earned her prize as part of Chicago — not to mention multiple other actors who've simply stayed on for years and years. And with...
Chicago is still bringing all that jazz! The revival of the classic Kander and Ebb musical, which began performances in 1996, will play its 10,000th performance this Saturday, June 25. Chicago will become only the second show in Broadway history to reach that milestone; The Phantom of the Opera did so on February 11, 2012 and has now played more than 13,000 performances.Chicago is the second-longest-running musical, the longest-running American musical, and the longest-running revival in...
The name on everybody's lips is gonna be Bianca, again! Bianca Marroquín will return to star as Roxie Hart in Chicago on Broadway from June 21. She replaces Emma Pittman, the "Search for Roxie" contest winner making her Broadway debut in the role; her final performance is June 19.Marroquín has played Roxie on and off in the U.S. and Mexico for the past 20 years, beginning with a Mexico City production of Chicago in 2002. She first played Roxie on Broadway that year, too. In 2021, she was part of...
When you're good to Jennifer Holliday, Jennifer Holliday's good to you. The Tony and Grammy-winning actress will reprise the role of Matron Mama Morton in Chicago on Broadway. Chicago is at the Ambassador Theatre. Get Chicago tickets on New York Theatre Guide.Holliday will star in Chicago for eight weeks from June 9 - July 31. She first played the role for a limited engagement in summer 2001.Holliday is best known for portraying Effie White in Dreamgirls on Broadway, notably singing "And I am...
The name on everybody's lips is gonna be Emma! Emma Pittman is set to make her Broadway debut in Chicago this summer, playing a two-week engagement as Roxie Hart from June 6 to 19. She follows Baywatch star Pamela Anderson, who plays her final performance June 5, in the role.Pittman was the winner of the The Search for Roxie! competition held in late 2019 to find a new Roxie Hart. The audition process included a video series, interviews with former celebrity Roxie Hart actresses, and interviews...
They're bringing the old razzle dazzle! Three returning cast members will step into the principal roles of Chicago on Broadway. They join the previously announced Pamela Anderson as Roxie Hart, who will perform for eight weeks beginning April 12.Lana Gordon (recently seen as Persephone in Hadestown) and Ryan Silverman will return to the roles of Velma Kelly and Billy Flynn, respectively. Gordon has played Velma four times before between 2016 and 2019, and Silverman has played Billy six other...
The name on everybody's lips is gonna be... Pamela! Pamela Anderson will play a limited eight-week engagement as Roxie Hart in Chicago beginning April 12. She assumes the role from Charlotte d'Amboise, who has played numerous Broadway runs as Roxie since 1999. Anderson is making her Broadway debut as Roxie. She is best known for her modeling work with Playboy Magazine and her television roles as C.J. on Baywatch, Lisa on Home Improvement, and Val on V.I.P., a show she also produced. Anderson has...
I saw the film version of Chicago for the first time this year. While I’d tried to watch it with my family as a kid, my parents, both lawyers, turned it off, explaining that the movie did a horrible job at depicting how the law actually worked. I always assumed my parents were right: I’ve spent countless days watching them in the courtroom, and it was nothing like Billy Flynn distracting the jury in “Razzle Dazzle.” However (and this will probably be the only time this happens), my lawyer...
The Tony-nominated actress Charlotte d'Amboise will reprise the role of Roxie Hart in Chicago from 10 January. d'Amboise takes over the role from Ana Villafañe. Chicago is at the Ambassador Theatre, and Chicago tickets are on sale now.d'Amboise first played the role of Roxie Hart in Chicago 25 years ago, appearing in the first Chicago national tour. She then first played Roxie on Broadway in 1999, and has appeared in Chicago for limited engagements over the last two decades. The new engagement...
Enter a world of jazz, crime, and razzle dazzle at Chicago on Broadway. Set in the 1920s and based on real events, this satirical show follows wannabe jazz age stars who get their fame not just for their singing or dancing talent, but for committing murders that make sensationalized headlines all across the city of Chicago.But even though their lawyer claims all you need is razzle dazzle — that "long as you keep them way off balance, how can they spot you've got no talents?" — Chicago's success...
James Monroe Iglehart is ready to razzle dazzle 'em! The Tony Award winner has been tapped as the next Billy Flynn in Chicago. Iglehart will play his first performance as Billy on January 17, taking over the role from Tom Hewitt.Iglehart was last seen on Broadway as Thomas Jefferson/Marquis de Lafayette in Hamilton and as a guest performer in freestyle love supreme, which just wrapped its second Broadway run on January 2. He has also appeared in Memphis and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling...
After 25 years, Chicago is still razzle-dazzling Broadway! On November 16, the show will host a special 25th anniversary performance at the Ambassador Theatre to commemorate the milestone. The performance will feature special guest appearances from some of the original Chicago cast members and "other surprises," which have yet to be announced.Chicago first premiered on Broadway in 1975 starring the late Gwen Verdon as Roxie Hart, Chita Rivera as Velma Kelly, and the late Jerry Orbach as Billy...
Paulo Szot will give audiences the ol' razzle dazzle as Billy Flynn when Chicago reopens on Broadway. Performances resume on September 14 at the Ambassador Theatre.With the announcement of Szot as Flynn, the <a href="https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/news-features/lillias-white-bianca-marroqu%C3%ADn-to-lead-reopening-cast-of-%E2%80%98chicago%E2%80%99-on-broadway"full reopening cast for Chicago has been officially set. Szot will join Ana Villafañe as Roxie Hart, Bianca Marroquín as Velma Kelly,...
The name on everybody's lips is gonna be... Ana. Ana Villafañe will play Roxie Hart in the reopening of Chicago on Broadway, with performances resuming at the Ambassador Theatre from September 14. Chicago tickets are on sale now. Villafañe is best known for playing Gloria Estefan in On Your Feet on Broadway, as well as starring in productions of In The Heights and Collective Rage. On television, Villafañe has starred in Younger and Night Court. Villafañe joins the <a...
UPDATE: Marroquín and Ana Villafañe, who plays Roxie Hart, have extended their runs in Chicago through January 9, 2022. White has also extended her run as Matron "Mama" Morton, playing her final performance on December 26, 2021.And all that jazz! The long-running musical Chicago has announced initial casting ahead of its reopening on Broadway September 14. Tony winner Lillias White and longtime cast member Bianca Marroquin will lead the cast as Matron "Mama" Morton and Velma Kelly,...
Chicago will reopen on Broadway in September after a year of suspended performances. Chicago will recommence at the Ambassador Theatre from Sept. 14, 2021, which is also the first night that Broadway theatres can welcome a full capacity audience. Find out more about Chicago at the Ambassador Theatre here.With Chicago reopening this September, the production will celebrate its 25th anniversary on Broadway on November 14. To date, it's the second-longest running Broadway musical of all time,...
For many of us, self-isolation can feel somewhat like being behind bars at times. Today's #QuaranTune is perhaps one of musical theater's most iconic numbers performed behind bars. Of course, we're talking about "Cell Block Tango" from Broadway's longest-running American musical Chicago!Written by John Kander and Fred Ebb, the Act I show-stopping number sees Velma Kelly and five other female inmates of the Cook County Jail in Chicago (Liz, Annie, June, Hunyak and Mona) revealing the crimes they...
The name on everybody's lips is gonna be... Erika! "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" standout Erika Jayne makes her Broadway debut tonight, assuming the role of Roxie Hart in the longest-running American musical Chicago. As previously announced, she is set to play a limited engagement at the Ambassador Theatre through March 29, 2020.Aside from Bravo's "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills," Ms. Jayne is also a recognised pop-dance artist, boasting nine #1's on the US Billboard dance chart. She...