Lea Michele Ends Chess Broadway Run June 21
Chess Broadway will play its final performance on June 21 at the Imperial Theatre, cutting short the revival’s planned run through September 13. The closing also ends the announced handoff that would have brought Joanna “JoJo” Levesque in as Florence Vassy two days later.
Imperial Theatre closing date
The revival has played 34 previews and 241 performances by the time the curtain falls, a much shorter Broadway run than the production’s original staging, which logged 17 previews and 68 performances. Last year’s return brought Chess back to Broadway for the first time in nearly 40 years, with Nicholas Christopher, Aaron Tveit, and Lea Michele leading the company at the Imperial.
Lea Michele has played Florence Vassy, Aaron Tveit has played Freddie Trumper, and Nicholas Christopher has played Anatoly Sergievsky. The cast also includes Hannah Cruz as Svetlana, Bradley Dean as Molokov, Sean Allan Krill as Walter, and Bryce Pinkham as The Arbiter, with music by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, lyrics by Tim Rice, a new book by Danny Strong, choreography by Lorin Latarro, and music supervision by Brian Usifer.
JoJo Levesque loses June 23
Joanna “JoJo” Levesque was set to succeed Michele beginning June 23, but the June 21 closing date cancels that run before it starts. For anyone following the production as a transfer or cast-change story, the practical effect is simple: the role switch will not happen, and the Imperial engagement ends with Michele’s final performance.
The production also received five Tony nominations for this year’s honors, but it was not included in the Best Revival of a Musical category. That split tells you where the awards attention landed and where it did not, even as the show drew enough support to keep extending before the closing decision.
Tom Hulce closing statement
“We are immensely proud of the extraordinary work this cast and creative team have done in reimagining Chess for a new generation of theatregoers while honoring the passionate fans who have championed this musical for nearly four decades,” Tom Hulce, Robert Ahrens, and The Shubert Organization said in a joint statement. They added, “To see longtime fans and first-time audiences alike embrace this production so wholeheartedly has been incredibly rewarding for everyone involved and a powerful reminder of why Chess has endured for so many years.”
They also said, “The opportunity to witness Aaron Tveit, Lea Michele, and Nicholas Christopher perform this legendary score by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus, and Tim Rice alongside a company filled with some of Broadway’s most remarkable talent is something that will stay with audiences long after they depart the Imperial Theatre.” The closing date leaves that cast intact to the end and stops the promised post-Michele transition cold.
