Lea Michele walked onto the August Wilson Theatre stage on September 6, 2022, carrying the weight of 58 years of Broadway history. She became only the third actress to play Fanny Brice in a Broadway production of “Funny Girl” since the musical premiered in 1964.
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The Actresses Who Brought Fanny Brice to Broadway
Barbra Streisand originated the role when “Funny Girl” opened at the Winter Garden Theatre on March 26, 1964. The show ran for 1,348 performances and turned an unknown 21-year-old into a star.
Beanie Feldstein opened the 2022 revival on April 24 but left the production after four months of mixed reviews.
Lea Michele took over in September 2022, earning standing ovations and prompting the production to record a new cast album two months later.
The role has appeared in other productions outside Broadway. Mimi Hines replaced Streisand later in the original 1964 run. Sheridan Smith won acclaim in London’s 2015 West End revival. Debbie Gibson toured with the show in 1996. But when theater fans and crossword solvers ask who played Fanny Brice on Broadway, these three names tell the story.
Barbra Streisand Created the Template in 1964
Streisand had never made a film when producer Ray Stark cast her as Fanny Brice. She’d appeared in one Broadway show, “I Can Get It for You Wholesale,” and worked in nightclubs. Stark wanted her anyway. His mother-in-law was Fanny Brice, and he’d spent years developing the musical about her life.
The show featured music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Bob Merrill. Songs like “People” and “Don’t Rain on My Parade” became standards. The New York Times critic Howard Taubman wrote that Streisand played “a young Brice bursting with energy and eagerness.”
Streisand earned a Tony nomination but lost to Carol Channing for “Hello, Dolly!” Four years later, she won the Academy Award for Best Actress when she reprised the role in the film version, sharing the honor with Katharine Hepburn.
Her performance became so tied to the role that Broadway waited 58 years before attempting another production. No other musical with that level of success had gone so long without a major revival.
The Woman Behind the Character
Fanny Brice was born Fania Borach in 1891 to Hungarian Jewish immigrants in New York. Theatrical producer Florenz Ziegfeld discovered her singing in a burlesque show in 1910 and recruited her for his famous Follies revue.
Brice became a headline act for the Ziegfeld Follies throughout the 1910s and 1920s. She sang “My Man” in the 1921 Follies, turning it into her signature song. The recording earned a posthumous Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 1999.
The musical centers on her relationship with gambler Nicky Arnstein, but the real story was messier than the stage version. Brice married barber Frank White from 1910 to 1913, a detail the show ignores. She knew about Arnstein’s criminal activities when she married him in 1918. When authorities charged Arnstein with conspiracy to sell $5 million in stolen Wall Street bonds in 1920, Brice funded his legal defense and visited him weekly during his 14-month prison sentence at Sing Sing.
They divorced in 1927 after she discovered his affair with another woman. Brice continued performing on radio through the 1930s and 1940s, playing a bratty toddler character named Baby Snooks. She died in 1951.
The 2022 Broadway Revival Brought Two Different Approaches
Michael Mayer directed the first Broadway revival with a revised book by Harvey Fierstein. The production opened in April 2022 with Beanie Feldstein as Fanny Brice and Ramin Karimloo as Arnstein.
Critics questioned whether Feldstein had the vocal range and comic energy the role demanded. Theater publications ran stories about audience members walking out. The production announced a casting change after four months.
Lea Michele had Broadway experience that Feldstein lacked. She’d performed as a child in “Les Misรฉrables” and “Fiddler on the Roof” before playing Rachel Berry on “Glee” for six seasons. Her September 2022 debut drew immediate praise. Critics called her performance technically accomplished and emotionally grounded.
The production recorded a new Broadway cast album with Michele in November 2022. Reviews described her version as the definitive modern interpretation of the role.
Why This Role Demands So Much
Playing Fanny Brice on Broadway requires skills most musical theater roles don’t. The actress needs comedy chops to land the character’s self-deprecating humor. She needs vocal power to handle songs written for Streisand’s three-octave range. She needs to make audiences believe a woman who didn’t fit conventional beauty standards could become the biggest star in American theater.
The musical runs over two hours with multiple costume changes, dance numbers, and emotional scenes. “Don’t Rain on My Parade” comes at the end of Act One, requiring the lead to belt a showstopper after 70 minutes onstage.
Streisand set expectations that every actress since has faced. Theater critics compare each new Fanny Brice to the 1964 original. Audiences arrive knowing the songs from the film version. The role became a benchmark for what a Broadway star should deliver.
The Crossword Connection
The November 21, 2025 New York Times crossword included the clue “Fanny Brice portrayer on Broadway” with a 10-letter answer: LEA MICHELE. Other crosswords have used variations. Some ask for the original actress (STREISAND at 9 letters). Some reference the 1968 film (BARBRA at 6 letters).
These clues work because the role has cultural reach beyond theater fans. People who never saw the show still know “People” or “Don’t Rain on My Parade.” Streisand’s film performance introduced millions to the character. The revival brought younger audiences who knew Michele from television.
What Comes Next for Funny Girl
The 2022 revival proved Broadway could stage “Funny Girl” without Streisand. Michele’s success showed audiences would accept a new interpretation if the actress had the technical skill and stage presence the role required.
A national tour launched in September 2023 with Katerina McCrimmon as Fanny Brice. The production visited Providence, toured through major cities, and introduced the musical to audiences outside New York.
More actresses will play Fanny Brice in regional theaters, international productions, and future Broadway revivals. Each will face comparison to Streisand’s original. The best will find something new in the character while honoring what made the role matter in 1964.
Sixty years after Barbra Streisand walked onto a Broadway stage as an unknown, the role she created continues to challenge and define what it means to be a leading lady in American musical theater.
