Because of the early signals of the coronavirus, Lea Michele announced in an Instagram Story that she will not be performing on stage during Saturday night’s performance of “Funny Girl.”
The “Glee” alum added, “I’m sad to announce that owing to early warning signs of COVID and ambiguous lab results due to the production’s safety standards, I’m not able to perform for today’s shows. I plan to test again and will inform fans as soon as I learn more.
The statement added, “Julie Benko is going to kill it today as Fanny, as are all of our fantastic substitutes who have ramped up so wonderfully this week while we battle a really severe covid outbreak in our theatre.”
After performing as Fanny Brice in the Broadway revival for the first time early this week, Michele, 36, shared a personal note on Instagram. When she first appeared as Fanny Brice on the Broadway stage, she exclaimed, “I want to say thank you very much for the encouragement.”
I’ve mentioned it before, but being a part of this cast has been my greatest honor. Everybody who helped with this project has my sincere gratitude.
Beanie Feldstein unexpectedly abruptly exited the show before she was supposed to, and Michele took up the role of Fanny. Feldstein, whose appearance had been met with mixed acclaim, cryptically remarked on social media about the producers’ decision to change the course of the play when she revealed her early departure.
Michele, who is known as a diva in Hollywood and has been criticized for her rude behavior by prior co-stars, has apparently gone out of her way to be courteous to the cast and crew. She’s being so kind, a source informed Page Six, that she makes Julie Andrews look like a b*tch. Michele recently attributed her earlier actions to her extremely rigorous work ethic.
