Lea Michele to replace Beanie Feldstein in Funny Girl on Broadway

The rumors were true: Lea Michele is officially replacing Beanie Feldstein as Fanny Brice in the Broadway revival of Funny Girl.

Feldstein earned much press for being the first woman to play Fanny on Broadway since Barbra Streisand originated the role, but the actress revealed Sunday that she will step away from the show at the end of this month after previously announcing her plans to exit the production (alongside Jane Lynch) in September.

Rumors had swirled that the Glee star known for her own rendition of Funny Girl track “Don’t Rain on My Parade,” would subsume the role. Michele has a working relationship with the show’s director, Michael Mayer, who helped propel her to theatrical stardom by casting and directing her in Spring Awakening.

Sadly, we won’t be getting a Glee reunion as Michele’s run as Fanny won’t overlap with former costar Lynch playing her mother. Instead, Tony nominee Tovah Feldshuh (Broadway’s Yentl, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend) will take over the role of Mrs. Brice when Michele begins on Sept. 6.

Feldstein’s understudy, Julie Benko, who earned strong notices when she stepped into the role in the star’s absences, will fill in during the gap between Feldstein’s July 31 departure and Michele’s arrival. Ramin Karimloo, who stars as Nick Arnstein, and Tony-nominee Jared Grimes, who plays Eddie Ryan, will remain with the production through the casting change.

Funny Girl was one of the most anticipated shows of the spring Broadway season, coming with high expectations due to the fact that this marks the first Broadway revival of the musical since its debut in the 1960s. But it was quickly hampered by lackluster reviews, particularly for Feldstein.

The show is currently in an open-ended run at the August Wilson Theatre.