Sutton Foster on Broadway

Stephen Sondheim’s famous musical about a murderous barber and his pie-baking accomplice originally opened in 1979 and achieved enormous success, winning eight Tony and nine Drama Desk awards including Best Musical. The show was adapted as a film in 2007 starring Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter. Directed by Thomas Kail (Hamilton), the latest Broadway revival of Sweeney Todd opened on March 26, 2023 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre. Originally starring Josh Groban and Annaleigh Ashford as Mrs. Lovett and Sweeney Todd, they were replaced by Sutton Foster and Aaron Tveit in February.

This production is the first time since 1979 it’s been staged at full scale, with a 26-piece orchestra and a cast of 25. The New York Times asks “What is Broadway for if not a ‘Sweeney’ that...is this well-done?”

The story of a conman traveling across the Midwest took Broadway by storm when it first opened in 1957. With book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Wilson and starring Robert Preston as Professor Harold Hill, The Music Man won five Tony Awards for its original run, including Best Musical, and received the inaugural Grammy award for Best Musical Theater Album. Preston reprised the role for the 1962 film adaptation. The 2022 revival, which played at the Winter Garden Theatre, starred Hugh Jackman as Harold Hill opposite Sutton Foster as Marian Paroo.

While the show received mixed reviews, it was a box office success, earning $3.5 million in ticket sales, more than any other show since the beginning of the pandemic. The show received six Tony nominations, and Foster won the Drama League award for Distinguished Performance.

Violet is a musical created by Jeanine Tesori (music) and Brian Crawley (book). Adapted from a short story by Dorris Betts called “The Ugliest Pilgrim,” it follows a young woman with a disfiguring scar across her face who journeys from her hometown in North Carolina to Tulsa, Oklahoma where she believes a televangelist will heal her. Directed by Leigh Silverman, and starring Sutton Foster as Violet, the show opened in April 2014 at the Todd Haimes Theatre (then called The American Airlines Theatre).

The Hollywood Reporter wrote, “Foster, a brilliant stage performer who can do leggy and glamorous or Plain Jane and gangly with equal conviction, embodies the latter with a fierce rejection of vanity.” Foster received Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, and Drama League nominations for Best Actress/Outstanding Actress and Distinguished Performance.

With music and lyrics by Cole Porter, and originally starring Ethel Merman, Anything Goes debuted in 1934 at the Neil Simon Theatre (then called the Alvin Theatre). The story follows the farcical antics of the passengers on an ocean liner traveling from New York to London. The show was a success despite the Great Depression and became the longest running Broadway production of the 1930s. Since then, Anything Goes has been revived many times and there have been two major film adaptations, both featuring Bing Crosby.

Sutton Foster starred as nightclub singer Reno Sweeney in the 2011 Broadway production produced by Roundabout Theatre Company which played at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre. She won the Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle awards for Best Actress/Outstanding Actress in a Musical for her performance.

The stage adaptation of the DreamWorks animated film Shrek was created by Jeanine Tesori (music) and David Lindsay-Abaire (book and lyrics). The show premiered at The Broadway Theatre in December 2008 starring Sutton Foster as Princess Fiona opposite Brian d’Arcy James as Shrek. The show ran for just over a year, closing in January 2010. The show won the Tony and Drama Desk awards for Best Costume Design, and Foster received Tony and Drama Desk Award nominations for Best Actress/Outstanding Actress in a Musical.

Adapted as a stage musical from the 1974 film of the same name starring Gene Wilder, Young Frankenstein was created by Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan (the same team behind The Producers). Directed by Susan Stroman, the show opened on Broadway in 2007 at the Lyric Theatre (then called the Hilton Theatre). Sutton Foster appeared as Inga, Frankenstein’s Transylvanian lab assistant. The production won the Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical.

The Drowsy Chaperone is a musical comedy with music and lyrics by Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison, and book by Bob Martin and Don McKellar. The show debuted in Toronto in 1998 and opened on Broadway in May 2006. The story revolves around an unnamed “Man in Chair” who plays his favorite musical theater album for the audience: a series of songs that parody 1920s musicals. The original Broadway cast starred Bob Martin as Man in Chair, Sutton Foster as Janet van de Graaff, and Beth Leavel as The Drowsy Chaperone.

The show won five Tony awards including Best Score and Best Book, and six Drama Desk awards including Outstanding Musical. Foster received Tony, Drama Desk, Drama League, and Outer Critics Circle nominations for Best Actress.

An adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s classic novel which follows the lives of the March sisters, the Broadway musical opened in January 2005 at the August Wilson Theatre (then called The Virginia Theatre). The show was directed by Susan H. Schulman and starred Sutton Foster. The show ran for 137 performances, and although the reviews were mixed, Foster earned critical acclaim for her portrayal of Jo.

Variety wrote, “Foster confirms herself an accomplished musical performer, finding the humor in Jo’s social ineptitude and lack of pretense…her Jo is plucky and likable, and her numbers charmingly sung.” Foster received Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle nominations for Best Actress in a Musical.

Based on the 1967 film of the same name starring Julie Andrews, Thoroughly Modern Millie is a musical with music by Jeanine Tesori, lyrics by Dick Scanlan, and book by Richard Morris and Scanlan. The story follows Millie Dillmount, who moves to New York City with the ambition to marry for money rather than love. Although Kristin Chenowith was initially slated to play Millie, she pulled out and was replaced by Erin Dilly. However, just before previews at San Diego’s La Jolla Theatre, Sutton Foster, an ensemble member and Dilly’s understudy, was chosen to play the lead instead. This decision proved to be Foster’s big break.

The show opened on Broadway in April 2002 and won six Tony and five Drama Desk awards, including Best Musical. Foster won the Tony and Drama Desk awards for Best Actress in a Musical.

This musical created by Frank Wildhorn (music) and Nan Knighton (lyrics and book) opened on Broadway in November 1997. The story is based on the 1905 novel of the same name by Baroness Orczy and tells the story of a mysterious man who is devoted to saving innocent people from the guillotine during the French Revolution. The show struggled financially and underwent several revisions, changing theatres, production teams, and casts. Sutton Foster appeared as part of the original ensemble.

The famous musical about a precocious orphan and her adventures in New York City debuted on Broadway in 1977. With music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Martin Charnin, and book by Thomas Meehan, the show was a huge hit, running for nearly six years. Since then, Annie has been performed all over the world and has been adapted as a film a number of times. The show’s most popular song “Tomorrow” has become a classic. Sutton Foster appeared in the 1997 Broadway revival as part of the ensemble. She played multiple roles including Ronnie Boylan, A Star to Be, and the Dog Catcher.

One of the most popular musicals of all time, Grease has become a classic since its initial Broadway run in 1972. Created by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey, the original production set a record for being Broadway’s longest running show at 3,388 performances over a span of eight years. Grease was adapted into a blockbuster film in 1978 starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John. Sutton Foster appeared in the ensemble of the 1994 Broadway revival at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre, whose cast included Rosie O’Donnell and Billy Porter. Foster understudied Rizzo and Sandy, and she took on the lead role of Sandy with the National Tour.

Les Misérables is currently the longest running musical in the West End and the sixth longest-running musical on Broadway. Based on the classic French novel by Victor Hugo, the show has been running for nearly 40 years in London since its premiere in 1985, and it ran for 16 years on Broadway following its premiere in New York in 1987. The musical was adapted as a film in 2012 with a star-studded cast including Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, and Russell Crowe. At the age of 16, Sutton Foster made her Broadway debut as an ensemble member and understudy for Éponine in 1987. She then played Éponine as part of the National Tour.