Oscar
Bart
Brad Oscar and Roger Bart will return to the lead roles in "The Producers" on Broadway beginning April 6.
The thesps have previously played the roles of Max Bialystock and Leo Bloom, respectively, on Broadway, but this time they will be following immediately in the footsteps of the roles' creators, Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick.
Lane and Broderick returned to the show in December, and the grosses, which had been declining since they departed a year and a half earlier, shot up. The show has been Broadway's top earner since they came back. During the week of March 8-14 it grossed $1.3 million.
Reports had circulated in recent weeks that Jon Lovitz and Kelsey Grammer were being wooed for the role of Max. The gradually declining grosses have led industry watchers to conclude that star names might be necessary to keep the B.O. aloft.
Both Bart and Oscar were in the show's cast when it came to Broadway. Oscar played Nazi composer Franz Liebkind; Bart was swishy assistant Carmen Ghia. Both were Tony nommed.
Contact Variety Staff at
news@variety.com