[Music] Broadway Balances America
brought to you by Broadway Across America,
bringing the best of Broadway to a city near
you.
Time now for Broadway Balances America,
our series that takes you behind the
scenes of some of the most beloved
Broadway musicals as they appear across
the country and into your local theaters,
today Chicago.
Yes this is a true New
York City institution.
Chicago has
everything that makes Broadway great,
it's got a universal tale of fame,
fortune, all that jazz, show-stopping
songs, amazing dancing, and well it's got
me for one night only!
Not only did I
get to go behind the scenes and tour the
backstage I got to meet the production's
creative powerhouses.
And you were hot!
I got to be in the show-- Check this
out!
Ladies and gentlemen you're about to
see a story of murder, greed,
corruption, violence, exploitation,
adultery, and treachery, all those things we
hold near and dear to our hearts.
And so it begins
the longest running American Broadway
musical.
[Music] For 21 years the award-winning
show has been razzle-dazzling theather
goers both here and abroad.
From the creative team
to its leading ladies, this is one
production that definitely has legs.
Fran and Barry Weissler are the show
producers.
You both have such an illustrious career and are
really Broadway royalty-- focusing on
Chicago, which-- yes you are Broadway
royalty.
The king and Queen.
What do you think it is that's so
magical about the show?
We thought that
the audience was ready for something
performance driven so this is about the
actors and so the set is on stage the
orchestra is on stage and it features
the actors and it's their show and we
thought it was time for that, for that to
happen.
Well I, I think it's timeless
material.
The subject matter is universal
the, the, the conflict between men and
women.
Our show's about people who are beautiful enough, and rich
enough to get away with murder.
At the heart of the
show set in the razzle-dazzle of the roaring
1920s are two rival vaudevillian murderesses Roxie Hart and Velma
Kelly, who are locked up in Cook County
Jail.
Over the last two decades they've been
played by the best of the best.
Are these your shoes?
No these they gave me downstairs, I
met Kevin.
Do you get to keep them?
I mean they might have to pry them off of me.
So Charlotte you've
been with the show 20 years, on and off,
touring what do you think it is about
Chicago that that people find so magical?
One reason is because of people coming
in and out and different celebrities and
different people, it's always fresh and
also it's just timeless.
It's about the
media and being successful and being
famous and that's all that seems to be
what people care about-- it's being
successful by being famous and, and beating the system.
It was Bob Fosse,
Kander and Ebb and we had an incredible
first cast but I think it's universal,
I think it's visual, I think it's the
music, it's exciting to watch, it's got
danger, it's got sex,y it's got all those
things and so we end up really crossing
all the cultural boundaries.
So this is
my view.
This is unbelievable.
I know right?!
With one great showstopper after the
next, John Kander and Fred Ebbs now classic
score keeps the story moving at a
razzle-dazzle pace.
So Tom it's 21 years
now that this shows been on Broadway.
Yea, like 21 years today!
I know can you believe they're letting me
on?!
Don't worry we'll take care of you, don't worry.
And taking care of me, they did.
Okay so we've got two weeks to go
until Chicago, so I'm headed to the gym
now I've been going enough but I thought
you guys might want to see what I'm
doing to get ready—check this out.
[Music] Have you seen those ladies in
their William Ivey Long designed
costumes, or lack thereof.
Sexy indeed, with their fishnets
and bowler hats, a tribute to the
original Bob Fosse choreography.
Okay everybody so it is show day,
it's finally here!
I've got so much to do I've gotta
get in hair fittings, I've got to go get
into costume fittings-- what little there
is of them-- and then I've gotta rehearse
because they've sent me some lines to
practice but I haven't done any rehearsal yet and we are
literally hours away from the show so I gotta go
[Music] Take the hat and you come to,
remember the 10 and the gold which
naturally you did.
If you're farther up or
down don't worry about it, this is,
this is the alignment that we are
looking for.
Since this is in your right
hand, take your left hand put it on the
other end of it, Boom.
Boom.
Yes.
All those things we hold
near and dear.
All those things we hold near and dear to our
hearts.
So they just put me through my paces for
learning a little bit of choreography,
How am I doing?
Um, you should be
in the show.
Then I'll go back step, step.
[Music] Give them an act with
with lots of flash and the reaction will be
passionate.
Right here is gonna be a lady.
Oh.
So you're gonna be going up stage
of her.
Got it thank you.
She's gonna be upside down in the split.
Okay no bigs; Totally normal.
Do you have any advice, I'm going on
tonight my first performance.
Okay.
And it's really close now, I think we're
like just hours, hours away from this.
Do you have any
advice?
Just stay in the moment and have
a good time, that's what I would say and
let people lead you, you know what I mean.
Like if you get lost or anything there are
gonna be people there helping you.
It's really emotional actually to be
doing this, I haven't been on stage
in, in years and TVs is different so I'm
feeling really blessed today-- just a
dream come true.
What goes over this where's the rest of the costume?
[Music] Ladies and gentlemen presenting
the silver tongue prince of the
courtroom, the one the only Mr. Billy
Flynn.
So can you tell people about Billy
Flynn, what's his character like?
Billy Flynn.
You know what's the phrase I could use,
morally challenged?
No I wouldn't even say that,
you know he's a really good lawyer.
Okay.
And brings with him all of the character
flaws and assets that come with being a
really, really good lawyer and winning
the case is what it's all about and he has the sort of self
awareness and self knowledge that it's all
a show.
Life is a show, so make it a good one.
It's all a circus kid, a three-ring
circus.
These trials, the whole world-- it's all show business.
Kid you are working with a star.
Give ‘em the old razzle dazzle, razzle dazzle ‘em.
Give ‘em an ac with lots of flash in
it and the reaction will be passionate.
More relevant today than when it was
first written, the press and audiences
everywhere have given the show many
well-deserved ovations.
We're ahead of
our time because this is a show where
women become empowered, and when they
become angry with the situation between
the males and females in their world.
They kill them.
They do in the bad guys you know there's no trial,
they're on trial, but the other fellow is
gone.
It's Broadway in every way; it has
dancing, it has singing, and it's all
incorporated beautifully into storytelling.
You get to see brilliant actors performing brilliant material
and you get a great story along with it
that is just not told and it's sort of
the dangerous fun tale and I think
that that's just universally
exciting.
Could I have one last picture please?
Oh it is, it's a lot of work.
They make it look so easy but this is not
easy but I do feel like I am in the best
hands tonight everybody, Mikey-- he literally has my back-- Malin
has just been amazing, Charlotte, Tom,
everybody has been so welcoming.
It was more, everything and
then some.
Thank you guys.
The North
American tour of Chicago is coming soon
to a theater near you.
Check out Broadway
Across America, Broadway Balances America,
or you can always go to our website
thebalancingact.com for all the show
information, tour dates and more.