It is poignant...but also, it does make you think, "wow, this girl looks way more like Nicole Sherzinger than Mandy Gonzalez." So maybe a wig (or a dedicated swing-on) would not gone astray.
It happens sometimes. When the 2011 FOLLIES went to LA after its broadway run, it did so with Victoria Clark instead of Bernadette Peters as Sally but with Lora Lee Gayer continuing as young Sally, and Gayer was absolutely cast for her strong resemblance to Bernie (see below.) They wigged Clark appropriately to build up a ressemblance, but it was like she was being haunted by the ghost of the previous actor.
I'll also note that there are reports that Tom Francis and Hannah Chamberlain are dating, and if that's true, the meta-textual levels of that particular showmance absolutely slays me.

Updated On: 12/4/24 at 08:16 PM