Kennedy Wilson stars as Fanny Brice in Footlite Musicals’ production of “Funny Girl.” (Photo provided)
By STU CLAMPITT
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Footlite Musicals is bringing the Broadway classic Funny Girl to the stage at Hedback Theater, 1847 N. Alabama St., Indianapolis, from March 6 to 22.
Featuring some of the most iconic songs in musical theatre history, Funny Girl tells the story of Fanny Brice, a witty, determined performer who defies expectations to become a Broadway star. Filled with humor, heart, and powerhouse vocals, this beloved classic celebrates individuality, ambition, and finding your voice.
Director and choreographer Kevin Bell told The Reporter he first discovered this play from hearing the movie soundtrack as part of his mother’s cassette collection built from her Columbia House mail-order music club membership.
“The thing that I loved the most about what I heard on those cassettes at first was that without even seeing the movie, I almost knew what was happening with the story,” Bell said. “The music that Jule Styne wrote for it was so distinctive and the lyrics were so easy to follow, when I finally saw the movie it was no surprise at all as to what was going on. It really was one of the first shows I guess I fell in love with.”
One of the challenges in bringing this show to stage is that most people are more familiar with the 1968 film starring Barbra Streisand and Omar Sharif than with the 1964 Broadway musical. There are strong differences between those two presentations, but Footlite has to stick strictly to the original 1964 Broadway version.
The show is based on the tumultuous real-life relationship between Fanny Brice and Nick Arnstein. With a cast ranging in ages from 20 to over 70, there are actors in this play who did not know anything about the original musical.
“The younger cast members are your Mean Girls and Heathers fans, who really did not know the show at all,” Bell said. “What’s been interesting is to give them the actual biographical facts about Fanny Brice’s life with Nick Arnstein. They were rather shocked because it’s a very scandalous story, actually. That’s one thing that’s kept their interest peaked.”
Bell told The Reporter this show will be an evening of entertainment in the old Broadway style.
“For all shows back then, the entertainment value was high,” Bell said. “You wanted to go to the theater and be entertained, which is great. This, being an older show, has a big tap number in it.”
The tapdancing was a bit of a challenge for this show, which is why Bell has an assistant director, Yolanda Valdivia, with a background in that dancing style.
“There were lots of ladies that were able to tap, but not as much with the guys,” Bell said. “We ended up having to choreograph in such a way that it was easy enough for the men to pick up. Some of them had to tap in other shows on and off but had not really been trained to tap. So we were able to make it to where they could do what they knew to do, and the ladies did what they knew to do, and it all actually works out.”
Bell’s background is in classical ballet and musical theater dancing, making Valdivia an asset to this show. In fact, Bell credits everyone behind the scenes with contributing a great deal to make sure Funny Girl feels as much like 1960s Broadway as possible.
Iconic songs including “Don’t Rain on My Parade,” “People,” and “I’m the Greatest Star,” along with ensemble tap dancing, 150 custom-made costumes, and a high-energy cast are ready to take you back to the golden era of Broadway entertainment at Hedback Theater, 1847 N. Alabama St., Indianapolis, from March 6 to 22.
Go to footlite.org/buy-tickets or call (317) 926-6630 for tickets.
