Lea Michele on ‘Funny Girl’ debut: Like ‘being shot out of a cannon’

nypost.com:

making her debut in the musical “Funny Girl” Tuesday, and she’s already wearing her Fanny Brice best.“This is such a dream come true for me,” Michele told Entertainment Weekly on Monday, revealing first-look photos of herself in costume.“And I cannot wait to take the stage on Tuesday as Fanny Brice on Broadway.”Michele, 36, first announced in July 2022 that she was taking over the role after Beanie Feldstein shocked fans by announcing her departure from the show — after receiving lukewarm reviews from critics and missing several performances.

The production is a revival of the 1964 show which starred Barbra Streisand and tells the real-life story of Brice, who rose to stardom as a member of Florenz Ziegfeld’s “Follies.”The “Glee” alum has long coveted the role of Fanny ever since her days on the hit musical TV show.

Her character gave spirited performances of many of the show’s iconic numbers such as “Don’t Rain on My Parade” and “People.”The production will also add the song “I’d Rather Be Blue Over You,” which was sung by Streisand for the film adaptation. “It’s going to be sort of like a reopening, in a sense,” Michele told Vogue, noting she has 22 costume changes which feel like “being shot out of a cannon.”A post shared by Funny Girl on Broadway (@funnygirlbwy)“I think that a lot of people might have had an idea of how I would be playing Fanny based on some of the things I did on ‘Glee,’ but this character is a combination of everything that I’ve learned in my life,” she added.In 2014, “Glee” creator Ryan Murphy obtained the rights to revive “Funny Girl,” which would have been helmed by Michele, but ultimately lost it, reports Vogue.During the run-up to her big debut, Michele has come under fire for her behavior.