Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
mormonsandglindas
Chorus Member Joined: 3/31/16
#1Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 6:15pm
Title says it all. Do you know of any Broadway actors /actresses who left a show or role once but then returned to it later on?
Sunny11
Broadway Star Joined: 9/3/14
#2Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 6:16pm
John Lloyd Young, Jersey Boys.
Dollypop
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/15/03
#3Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 6:16pm
The glorious Carol Channing
#4Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 6:19pm
mormonsandglindas said: "Title says it all. Do you know of any Broadway actors /actresses who left a show or role once but then returned to it later on? "
Yes, I do.
Oh, to answer what you actually wanted to know: I feel like half of the people who've played a lead in any long-running Broadway show have returned to the same role at some point.
Adair Haywind
Leading Actor Joined: 4/2/14
#5Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 6:32pm
^It's true. There are SO many examples of this.
Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp in Rent
Bebe Neuwirth in Chicago
Marissa Jaret Winokur and Harvey Fierstein in Hairspray
Ted Neeley returns to the role of Jesus in JCS about every 6 months or so. Ha!
Queen of the Night
Featured Actor Joined: 6/12/07
#6Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 6:36pm
Lea Salonga returned to Kim in Miss Saigon on Broadway several years after her first run in it.
Terrence Mann originated Javert in Les Miserables on Broadway in 1987 and then came back to play it again in 2003 right before the original production closed.
#7Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 6:39pm
Ashley Brown and I think Gavin Lee both came back to Mary Poppins Later on in the run.
As someone said above, most of the leads in Phantom, Chicago or the Lion King have left and gone back once or twice.
#8Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 6:40pm
Kelsey grammer went back to finding neverland, Christine Dwyer has been back at the Gershwin a plethora amount of times.
#9Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 6:42pm
Adair Haywind said: "Ted Neeley returns to the role of Jesus in JCS about every 6 months or so. Ha!"
He's been Jesus longer than Jesus was Jesus.
#10Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 6:43pm
Mandy Patinkin returned to the cast of SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE in August 1985 for the final few months of the run leading up to the taping for the PBS American Playhouse series.
Cast albums are NOT "soundtracks."
Live theatre does not use a "soundtrack." If it did, it wouldn't be live theatre!
I host a weekly one-hour radio program featuring cast album selections as well as songs by cabaret, jazz and theatre artists. The program, FRONT ROW CENTRE is heard Sundays 9 to 10 am and also Saturdays from 8 to 9 am (eastern times) on www.proudfm.com
MannPhan24601
Broadway Star Joined: 11/4/15
#11Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 6:44pm
Pretty sure Lin closed In The Heights and then played Unsavi again during a few of the tour stops...
#12Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 7:01pm
Ethel Merman toured in CALL ME MADAM in the 1960s. But she also revived ANNIE GET YOUR GUN on Broadway, which is a better example, I think.
If you count tours, the list will be almost endless. Before theaters were air conditioned, it was quite common to take the Broadway company on tour for the summer and then return to Broadway in the fall.
To take a different type of example, George Lee Andrews understudied Len Cariou in the original A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC. Then George took over the role permanently in the national tour. Assuming he went on for Carious at least once, then he "returned" to the role on tour.
Meanwhile Hermoine Gingold played Madame Armfeldt on Broadway, gave way to Margaret Hamilton for the national tour, but took the role back for the last three weeks in Fort Lauderdale. She did so to brush up before her appearance in the London production which followed the tour. (Trivia: Miss Hamilton sent the company the most gracious good luck note, despite having been left behind in Boston!)
For all these reasons, I think we might restrict ourselves to "returns" on Broadway.
TheGingerBreadMan
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/7/12
#13Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 7:13pm
Gwen Stewart originated the roles of Mrs. Jefferson and The Bag Lady in RENT, and returned in 2008 to close the run.
#14Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 7:20pm
Nathan Lane & Matthew Broderick in The Producers
Constantine Maroulis in Rock of Ages
Andrea Martin in Pippin
Kelli O'Hara in South Pacific
Bryce Pinkham in A Gentleman's Guide to Love & Murder
#15Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 7:45pm
Ken Watanabe from King and I
#16Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 7:45pm
Ken Watanabe from King and I
#17Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 8:06pm
Jonathan Groff, Hamilton
BroadwayConcierge
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/24/15
#18Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 8:11pm
non-stop26 said: "Jonathan Groff, Hamilton"
Well, this is just patently false (at least at this moment in time).
#19Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 8:13pm
WICKED cast members return all the time after they leave!
Ranger Tom
Leading Actor Joined: 7/6/14
#20Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 8:15pm
If I'm not mistaken, Donna McKechnie came back to play Cassie in ACL later in the initial Broadway run.
#22Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 8:38pm
non-stop26 said: "Jonathan Groff, Hamilton"
Well, this is just patently false (at least at this moment in time).
I assume they're referring to when he left to film the Looking movie and then returned.
#23Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 8:42pm
Kelli o'hara returned to South Pacific twice and Laura osnes replaced Kelli twice.
#24Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 8:55pm
The first two I thought of... Lea Salonga in Miss Saigon and Savion Glover in Noise/Funk.
JCM returned to Hedwig.
#25Have Broadway actors ever returned to a role after leaving?
Posted: 4/18/16 at 9:10pm
Richard Burton and Robert Goulet in CAMELOT...but Goulet became Burton later on.
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