Cast announced for Young Frankenstein-the musical
JAZZ4JEFF
Broderick for his second Broadway musical, but Young Frankenstein will
boast a cast that features Tony Award winners Sutton Foster and Shuler
Hensley as well as former "Will & Grace" star Megan Mullally.
By Andrew Gans
09 Mar 2007
Megan Mullally will play Elizabeth in Young Frankenstein.
Mel Brooks may not have the dream team of Nathan Lane and Matthew
Broderick for his second Broadway musical, but Young Frankenstein will
boast a cast that features Tony Award winners Sutton Foster and Shuler
Hensley as well as former "Will & Grace" star Megan Mullally.
The New York Post reports that Mullally, who recently hosted her own
TV chat show, will play the role of Elizabeth, created in the 1974
film by the late Madeline Kahn. Tony winner Kristin Chenoweth, back on
Broadway this season in The Apple Tree, had performed the role in the
musical's workshop, but will be unable to play the part on Broadway
because she recently landed a TV pilot.
Foster, the young Tony-winning actress currently on Broadway in the
hit musical The Drowsy Chaperone, will play Inga (created on screen by
Teri Garr), and Tarzan's Shuler Hensley - a Tony winner for his work
in the Oklahoma! revival - will play the Monster (Peter Boyle in the
film).
The New York daily also says that Roger Bart and Andrea Martin have
been offered the roles of, respectively, Igor and Frau Blucher.
Television roles, however, may prevent them from accepting those
parts.
The role of Dr. Frankenstein has yet to be cast. Zachary Levi, who had
been seen on ABC's "Less Than Perfect," had been offered the role, but
he, too, landed a pilot and has departed the musical production. The
Post says Mullally's "Will & Grace" co-star, Eric McCormack, is being
considered for the Frankenstein role.
Mel Brooks' new musical, Young Frankenstein, with a score by Mel
Brooks, a book by Brooks and Thomas Meehan and direction and
choreography by Susan Stroman - the team that turned The Producers
into gold - will play the coveted St. James Theatre. No dates have
been announced.
Best known for her role as Karen on the Emmy-winning NBC series "Will
& Grace," Megan Mullally appeared on Broadway opposite Matthew
Broderick in the revival of How to Succeed in Business Without Really
Trying and portrayed Marty in the most recent revival of Grease! Her
one woman musical, Sweetheart, played a sold-out run in Los Angeles.
She was also the host of "The Megan Mullally Show."
Sutton Foster received a Tony nomination for her work in the hit
musical The Drowsy Chaperone at the Marquis Theatre. The singing
actress starred in the title role of Thoroughly Modern Millie and
received the Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Astaire awards
for that performance. She also received a Tony nomination for her
performance in Little Women, and her other Broadway credits include
roles in Les Misérables, Annie, The Scarlet Pimpernel and Grease!.
Foster's regional and tour credits include What the World Needs Now,
Dorian, Three Musketeers, South Pacific and The Will Rogers Follies.
Shuler Hensley, currently on Broadway in Tarzan, won a Tony Award for
his work as Jud Fry, a role he created on the London stage to Olivier
Award-winning effect, in the most recent Broadway revival of
Oklahoma!. His other theatrical credits include Les Misérables, The
Phantom of the Opera, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
and The Most Happy Fella. Hensley's numerous screen credits include
"Van Helsing," "Ed," "Deadline," "Gary Powers," "Monday Night Mayhem,"
"Sabrina," "Someone Like You," "The Bread My Sweet," "Legend of Zorro"
and "Opa!"