The night of September 6, when Lea Michele, 36, made her eagerly anticipated Broadway debut as Fanny Brice in the production of Funny Girl, she had the entire audience’s attention and garnered four standing ovations.
Late that night, TV presenter Frank DiLella stated in a tweet that she had received no less than seven. Fans had a sense of déjà vu when they remembered the actress’s Glee character Rachel Berry fictitiously taking on the same role in the hit Fox television show.
Tonight… 7 standing ovations later… #LeaMichele IS #FannyBrice.@FunnyGirlBwy pic.twitter.com/nQVmBghcw9
— Frank DiLella (@fdilella) September 7, 2022
The actress didn’t hold back as she sang her heart out in the lead role, which was first made famous by the legendary Barbra Streisand in the 1964 original Broadway debut.
Lea made quite a lasting impression when she stepped out on the stage of the August Wilson Theater in New York City to take on the role of a lifetime, despite a difficult few years full of not-so-great headlines about herself. It didn’t take long for fans and critics alike to take to social media to share their thoughts.
Lea’s performance was referred to as “phenomenal” and “unforgettable” in other tweets, while one fan labelled her a “real star” Also during the show, Lea reportedly said, “I haven’t read many novels,” to which the audience apparently gasped and laughed.
They were probably thinking about the recent news-making conspiracies that claimed the gifted singer and actress couldn’t read, which she promptly disproved, when she spoke the statement. Nearly two months have passed since Lea made her Funny Girl debut as Fanny and the news that she would be taking over for Beanie Feldstein in the lead role made headlines.
At the time, it was also revealed that Tovah Feldshuh will take over for Lea’s former Glee co-star Jane Lynch, who portrayed the part of Rosie Brice in the play. Soon after the news, Lea posted on social media to share her joy at landing her “dream” role.
There’s no other way to describe Lea Michele’s performance in Funny Girl other than unbelievable pic.twitter.com/qNmTowwhEC
— Logan Leavitt (@LoganLeavitt) September 7, 2022
She captioned a picture of herself in front of the show’s marquee at the August Wilson Theatre, writing, “A dream come true.” The first video of Lea’s play rehearsals was posted on the show’s official social media page in the middle of August, and it greatly heightened anticipation among viewers.
However, some detractors questioned her selection for the position since she was charged with treating ex-coworkers unfairly on several episodes in messages on social media. Lea responded with a lengthy apologies post of her own and acknowledged that she had been working on improving herself at the time the accusations were made.
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Lea was expecting her first child at the time. Some of her comments stated, “What matters is that I obviously acted in ways which damaged other people.
I apologize for my actions and for any hurt I have caused, whether it was my privileged position and perspective that occasionally led to me being regarded as insensitive or improper, or whether it was just my immaturity and me being unnecessarily difficult.
She continued by saying that during the past few months, she had been “thinking on [her] own inadequacies,” and that as she got ready to have her kid, she wanted to “accept responsibility for [her] acts.” She concluded, “While I am really sorry, I will be better in the future from this experience. I listened to these criticisms and I am learning.
Lea appears to be the centre of attention as she steps into her new role of a lifetime, but she is determined to remember the wonderful actresses who portrayed Fanny before them.
@beaniefeldstein @jujujuliebee @ephieaardema, for the Fanny’ s who have bravely performed on this stage before me Just before her debut, she posted on her Instagram story, “I am thrilled to be in your company. You all have scaled the mountain that is Fanny. Of course, our queen @BarbraStreisand.