Chilina Kennedy (Beautiful, Paradise Square) will play the role of Myrtle beginning July 15 in the hit Broadway musical adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s landmark novel The Great Gatsby. Kennedy covers the role while original Broadway cast member Sara Chase (“The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”) is on a medical leave of absence through the summer.
Kennedy played the role of Carole King in the musical Beautiful on Broadway for over 1,200 performances. She also originated the roles of Annie O'Brien in Paradise Square and Dina in the First Broadway National Tour of The Band’s Visit. Chilina’s first appearance on Broadway was in 2012 when she played Mary Magdalene in Des McAnuff’s Jesus Christ Superstar, which also had successful runs at the Stratford Festival of Canada and the La Jolla Playhouse. Select additional US credits include the world premiere of A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, in which she originated the role of Phoebe at Hartford Stage and The Old Globe in San Diego (San Diego and Connecticut Outer Critics nominations), the world premiere of A Sign Of The Times as Cindy (Delaware Theatre Company & New World Stages in NYC), and Binky in the Off-Broadway world premiere of This Ain’t No Disco (Dir. Darko Tresnjak/Chor. Camille A. Brown).
Tony Award-nominated Broadway sensations Jeremy Jordan (Newsies, “Smash”) and Eva Noblezada (Hadestown, Miss Saigon), lead the cast of The Great Gatsby alongside Noah J. Ricketts (“Fellow Travelers”, Frozen) as Nick Carraway, Samantha Pauly (Six) as Jordan Baker, John Zdrojeski (Good Night Oscar) as Tom Buchanan, Paul Whitty (Come From Away, Once) as George Wilson, and Eric Anderson (Moulin Rouge! The Musical, Waitress) as Wolfsheim. Completing the production’s ensemble are Raymond Edward Baynard (MJ: the Musical), Curtis Holland (Mean Girls), Jeff Kready (Company), Traci Elaine Lee (Shucked), Dariana Mullen (The Great Gatsby at Paper Mill), Ryah Nixon (Boop! The Musical), Pascal Pastrana (A Beautiful Noise), Kayla Pecchioni (Paradise Square), Mariah Reives (Funny Girl), Dan Rosales (Trevor: The Musical), Dave Schoonover (Bad Cinderella), Derek Jordan Taylor (Funny Girl), Tanairi Sade Vazquez (On Your Feet!), and Katie Webber (Rock of Ages). Kurt Csolak (Funny Girl), Carissa Gaughran (Pretty Woman National Tour), Samantha Pollino (Sweeney Todd), Alex Prakken (New York, New York), Jake Trammel (The Great Gatsby at Paper Mill), and Jasmine Pearl Villaroel (After Midnight) round out the cast as swings.
Hailed by Entertainment Weekly as “A Great, Big Broadway extravaganza that explodes with life and energy,” F. Scott Fitzgerald’s timeless novel has landed on the Broadway musical stage for the first time ever in The Great Gatsby , a new hit show transporting sold-out audiences on “a glitzy, glamorous romp through the Roaring 20s.” The story follows eccentric and mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby, who will stop at nothing in the pursuit of the lost love of his youth, Daisy Buchanan. Through its fascinatingly nuanced characters – driven by complex inner lives, erupting with extravagance and longing – this epic tale has always been destined to sing. Now, it comes to life on the greatest American stage, with grand, Tony Award-winning production design befitting the 21st century. Through an electrifying jazz and pop-infused score, “led by vocal-powerhouse stars, Jeremy Jordan and Eva Noblezada, The Great Gatsby is an extravagant, crowd-pleasing spectacle, where a cascade of visual splendor showers the eye.” (Washington Post) The musical features music & lyrics by Tony Award nominees Jason Howland (Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, Little Women) and Nathan Tysen (Paradise Square), a book by Jonathan Larson Grant winner Kait Kerrigan (The Mad Ones) and is staged by award-winning director Marc Bruni (Beautiful: The Carole King Musical) and choreographer Dominique Kelley (“Mariah’s Magical Christmas Special”, “Dancing with the Stars”). The Great Gatsby began previews on Friday, March 29, 2024, and opened on Thursday, April 25, 2024, at The Broadway Theatre (53rd & Broadway).
The world premiere engagement of The Great Gatsby was the highest grossing show in Paper Mill Playhouse history. The production, which ran October 12–November 12, 2023, also broke the theater’s all-time record for ticket sales in a single day, and sold out the entire run before its very first performance. The New York Times hailed the production as “dazzling, lush, and bewitching... Jeremy Jordan’s Gatsby is grounded and debonair, which makes it all the more thrilling when his voice scurries up to a delicious falsetto. Eva Noblezada captures Daisy’s longing with an emotive and powerful voice.” The musical was lauded by The Star Ledger as, “a triumph! Smartly written, sharply directed, expertly performed, and teeming with excitement and drama, this musical adaptation explodes off the stage!” New York Stage Review declared Jordan and Noblezada, “simply sensational,” and Broadway World said, “this exceptional new musical is destined to become a treasured addition to American musical theatre.”
The Broadway premiere of The Great Gatsby features Drama Desk Award-winning scenic & projection design by Paul Tate de Poo III (Spamalot, Tommy at The Kennedy Center), Tony Award-winning costume design by Linda Cho (Anastasia, A Gentleman’s Guide...), sound design by Tony Award winner Brian Ronan (Beautiful, The Book of Mormon), lighting design by Cory Pattak (Spamalot), and hair & wig design by Drama Desk Award winner Charles G. LaPointe (The Cher Show, Spongebob Squarepants) & Rachael Geier. Arrangements are by Jason Howland, Orchestrations are by Jason Howland and Kim Scharnberg (Jekyll & Hyde), the Music Director is Daniel Edmonds (Strictly Ballroom), and the music producer is Grammy Award winner Billy Jay Stein for Strike Audio (Beautiful – cast album). Casting is by C12 Casting (Gutenberg, & Juliet) and the Production Stage Manager is Brian Bogin (The Great Comet, Mike Birbiglia: The Old Man & The Pool). Mark Shacket (Funny Girl, Slave Play) of Foresight Theatrical serves as Executive Producer.
Tickets for the Broadway production are $39–199 (incl. $2 facility fee), and are now on sale at Telecharge.com through February 23, 2025. Group tickets are on sale through May 25, 2025. The regular performance schedule is: Mondays at 7pm, Wednesdays at 7pm, Thursdays at 2pm & 8pm, Fridays at 7pm, Saturdays at 2pm & 8pm, and Sundays at 3pm. Holiday schedules may vary, for more information visit broadwaygatsby.com.