From Ashlee Simpson to Erika Jayne, These Celebs Have Starred in ‘Chicago’ on Broadway

Erika Jayne went from Beverly Hills to Chicago.

In September 2019, the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star announced on Instagram that she was set to star in Broadway’s production of Chicago in New York City from January 6 to March 29, 2020. The Bravo personality scored the role of the musical’s lead, Roxie Hart, a woman who is on trial for the murder of her husband.

“BROADWAY. ROXIE HART. JAN 6.” she captioned a Chicago poster of her in a leopard-print suit. 

Two months after taking the stage, the singer was forced to end her Broadway run early due to the COVID-19 shutdown. “Well this is not the way I wanted to say goodbye to Roxie and my Chicago family but I have no choice,” Jayne wrote via Instagram in March 2020. “THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart to everyone that came to the shows . I leave NYC feeling like my mission is incomplete but I will treasure this time always.”

The “Xxpensive” performer is far from the first celebrity (and Bravolebrity) to make her Broadway debut in Chicago. Stars from Spice Girls member Mel B to model Christie Brinkley have taken the stage in the musical, which is based on journalist Maurine Dallas Watkins’ 1926 play of the same name and the various murder cases she reported on. The story, which follows Roxie’s legal troubles from her arrest to her trial, is said to be a satire on the concept of the “celebrity criminal.” 

Chicago debuted on Broadway in 1975. The show was nominated for nearly a dozen Tony Awards, including Best Musical and Best Direction of a Musical for Bob Fosse, and ran for two years. Chicago was revived on Broadway in 1996 and took home six Tonys for categories such as Outstanding Revival of a Musical and Outstanding Choreography. The show holds the record for the second longest-running musical revival in Broadway history behind The Phantom of the Opera.  

The musical was adapted into a movie of the same title starring Renée Zellweger and Catherine Zeta-Jones in 2002. The film went on to win six Oscars at the 75th Academy Awards for categories such as Best Picture and Best Supporting Actress for Zeta-Jones, who played Velma Kelly, a showgirl who is arrested for the murder of her husband and sister and becomes somewhat of a mentor to Roxie.  

Scroll through for more celebrities who have starred in the Broadway production of Chicago:

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The Baywatch alum will take on the lead role from April 2022 to June 2022.

The Bravolebrity announced in September 2019 that she will star as Roxie Hart in Broadway’s production of Chicago for three months in 2020. 

The supermodel made her Broadway debut as Roxie in Chicago in 2010. She went on to play the character for two stops on the Chicago national tour in 2019 before returning to Broadway in April of that year to reprise her role.

The Real Housewives of Atlanta star performed in Chicago for three months in 2018. The Bravo star, who made her Broadway debut in the musical, played Matron “Mama” Morton, a mother figure of the Cook County jail’s women’s block, where Roxie waits for her trial. The character was played by Queen Latifah in the Chicago movie. 

The Spice Girls member starred as Roxie in Chicago in 2016 and 2017. She performed for the first time on Broadway as Mimi in Rent in 2004. In her final Chicago performance in February 2017, the America’s Got Talent alum sang a line from the Spice Girls’ “Wannabe” during one of Roxie’s songs. 

Demi Moore and Bruce Willis’ eldest daughter also played Roxie in Chicago. The Dancing With the Stars alum performed as the character for six weeks in 2015. The show was her Broadway debut.  

The New Normal alum was the first RHOA cast member to star in Broadway’s production of Chicago. The Bravo star performed as Matron "Mama" Morton in the musical in 2015, the same role her RHOA costar Burruss played three years later. Leakes made her Broadway debut in 2014 as the wicked stepmother in Cinderella. 

The “Pieces of Me” singer performed on Broadway for the first time in 2009 as Roxie in Chicago. She played the character in the London West End production of the musical in 2005. 

The “Achy Breaky Heart” artist played lawyer Billy Flynn in Chicago in 2012. The character is Roxie’s defense attorney who wins her and Velma’s case. The musical was the country star’s premiere on Broadway.

In 2009, the Modern Family star made her Broadway debut as Matron “Mama” Morton in Chicago. She performed in the musical for five weeks. 

The Days of Our Lives alum took the stage as Roxie in Chicago 12 years before her RHOBH costar Jayne’s announcement. The soap star performed in the musical for two months in 2007. Her husband, Harry Hamlin, also starred with her as Billy Flynn.