(AGENPARL) – gio 28 settembre 2023 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 28, 2023
BOOP! The Betty Boop Musical
Full Casting Announced
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BOOP!
The Betty Boop Musical
starring
Jasmine Amy Rogers as Betty Boop
Ainsley Melham, Erich Bergen, Stephen DeRosa, Angelica Hale, Anastacia McCleskey
Faith Prince
With music by David Foster and lyrics by Susan Birkenhead
Book by Bob Martin
Directed and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell
PRE-BROADWAY WORLD PREMIERE
BROADWAY IN CHICAGO’S
CIBC THEATRE
NOVEMBER 19-DECEMBER 24, 2023
Rehearsals begin today!
CHICAGO (September 28, 2023) – Broadway In Chicago is proud to announce complete casting for BOOP! The Betty Boop Musical at Broadway In Chicago’s CIBC Theatre (18 W. Monroe St.) live on stage for the first time for a limited five-week engagement, November 19 – December 24.
Leading the cast are Jasmine Amy Rogers as Betty Boop (Mean Girls national tour), Tony Award®-winner Faith Prince as Valentina (Guys and Dolls, “Monarch”), Ainsley Melham as Dwayne (Aladdin), Erich Bergen as Raymond (Jersey Boys, “Madam Secretary”), Stephen DeRosa as Grampy (“Boardwalk Empire”), Angelica Hale as Trisha (“America’s Got Talent” finalist), and Anastacia McCleskey as Carol (Caroline or Change).
The cast also includes Lawrence Alexander (Follies), Tristen Buettel (Bad Cinderella), Colin Bradbury (Funny Girl), Joshua Burrage (Cats), Gabi Campo (Some Like it Hot), Dan Castiglione (Yes Day), Rebecca Corrigan (In the Heights), Josh Drake (Aladdin), RJ Higton (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”), Phillip Huber (Being John Malkovich), Nina LaFarga (In the Heights), Aubie Merryless (To Kill A Mockingbird), Morgan McGhee (The Who’s Tommy at the Goodman), Ryah Nixon (Once Upon a One More Time), Christian Probst (Bad Cinderella), Ricky Schroeder (Kinky Boots), Gabriella Sorrentino (Hamilton), Brooke Taylor (recent graduate of University of Michigan), Courtney Arango (A Chorus Line), Ian Gallagher Fitzgerald (Kinky Boots), Sydney Jones (A Beautiful Noise), Derek Jordan Taylor (student at Boston Conservatory), Amy Van Norstrand (Holiday Inn).
Tony Award^®-winning director/choreographer Jerry Mitchell (Kinky Boots, Pretty Woman: The Musical, Hairspray) brings the Queen of the Animated Screen to the theater in BOOP! The Betty Boop Musical, with celebrated multiple Grammy^® Award-winning composer David Foster (“I Have Nothing,” “After The Love Is Gone,” “The Prayer”), Tony Award^®-nominated lyricist Susan Birkenhead (Working, Jelly’s Last Jam), and Tony Award^®-winning book writer Bob Martin (The Drowsy Chaperone, The Prom).  
Betty Boop, that sassy-sweet champion of empowerment, that spit-curled icon of joy, that songstress of strength, comes alive in BOOP! The Betty Boop Musical, the new Broadway-bound musical comedy extravaganza. 
For almost a century, Betty Boop, created by animation pioneer Max Fleischer, has won hearts and inspired fans around the world with her trademark looks, voice, and style. Now, in BOOP! The Betty Boop Musical, Betty’s dream of an ordinary day off from the super-celebrity in her black-and-white world leads to an extraordinary adventure of color, music, and love in New York City — one that reminds her and the world, “You are capable of amazing things.” 
The design and creative team for BOOP! The Betty Boop Musical includes David Rockwell, set design (Broadway: A Beautiful Noise, Into the Woods [2002], She Loves Me [2016 Tony Award®]); Gregg Barnes, costumes (Tony Awards®: The Drowsy Chaperone, Follies [2011], Some Like It Hot); Philip S. Rosenberg, lighting (Broadway: Mrs. Doubtfire, Pretty Woman); Gareth Owen, sound (Tony Award®: MJ: The Musical); Finn Ross, projection design (Tony Award® The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time); Sabana Majeed, hair & wig design (Uncut); Michael Clifton, makeup design (New York, New York); Skyler Fox, illusions design (Volkov); The Huber Marionettes, marionette Design (Darling Grenadine Jeff Award nomination); and Daryl Waters, musical supervision and arrangements (Broadway: The Cher Show, Shuffle Along, After Midnight).
Boop-oop-a-doop! 
TICKET INFORMATION
BOOP! The Betty Boop Musical is based on the characters created by Max Fleischer. 
ABOUT BETTY BOOP AND FLEISCHER STUDIOS 
First introduced in 1930, Betty Boop was created by Max Fleischer for his “Talkartoons” series, the world’s first animated “talkies” which Max’s company, Fleischer Studios, produced for Paramount Studios. Betty initially appeared as a dog-like stage performer who sang and danced with another dog-like character named Bimbo, joyfully entertaining vast audiences of other Fleischer characters from the animal kingdom.  
Inspired by the collective energy, style, and sound of the many popular Jazz Age flappers and entertainers of the 1920s, Betty quickly evolved into a full-fledged human character, and by 1932 she had become the only female animated screen star in the world. Voiced by Mae Questel, Betty starred in more than 100 cartoons, 90 of which are included in the official Betty Boop series, which ended in 1939. Since then, Betty has appeared in dozens of hit movies, television specials, commercials, and was the first cartoon character to be profiled by A&E’s Biography series. 
Connect with BOOP! The Betty Boop Musical: 
Facebook: @boopthemusical 
Instagram: @boopthemusical 
X: @boopthemusical  
TikTok: @boopthemusical 
YouTube: @boopthemusical 
ABOUT BROADWAY IN CHICAGO
Broadway In Chicago was created in July 2000 and over the past 23 years has grown to be one of the largest commercial touring homes in the country. A Nederlander Presentation, Broadway In Chicago lights up the Chicago Theater District entertaining up to 1.7 million people annually in five theatres. Broadway In Chicago presents a full range of entertainment, including musicals and plays, on the stages of five of the finest theatres in Chicago’s Loop including the Cadillac Palace Theatre, CIBC Theatre, James M. Nederlander Theatre, Auditorium Theatre, and just off the Magnificent Mile, the Broadway Playhouse at Water Tower Place.
TM & © 2023 Fleischer Studios, Inc. 
BIOGRAPHIES OF THE CAST
JASMINE AMY ROGERS (Betty Boop) recently finished a run as the scene stealing “Gretchen Wieners” in the National Tour of Mean Girls. Prior to that she was seen as “Melody Green” in Paper Mill Playhouse’s production of The Wanderer and as “Francis Bassey” in the world premiere of Becoming Nancy, directed by Jerry Mitchell at the Alliance Theatre. On television she has appeared in “Evil” on Paramount+. She was a Jimmy Awards’ finalist and appeared in Cabaret as Sally Bowles at the Manhattan School of Music where she studied musical theatre. 
FAITH PRINCE (Valentina). Broadway: Jerome Robbins Broadway (Tony nomination), Nick & Nora, Guys and Dolls (Tony Award), What’s Wrong With This Picture?, The King and I, Little Me, James Joyce’s The Dead, Bells Are Ringing (Tony nomination), Noises Off, Disney’s The Little Mermaid, A Catered Affair (Tony nomination), Annie, and Disaster. TV/Film includes: “Monarch,” “Emily in Paris,” “Scream Queens,” “Drop Dead Diva,” “Spin City,” “Huff,” “Modern Family,” Dave, My Father the Hero, Picture Perfect, It Had to Be You. Her many live appearances and two solo albums available for streaming. Ms. Prince has an Honorary Doctorate from her alma mater, U of Cincinnati CCM.
AINSLEY MELHAM he/him (Dwayne) starred as Aladdin in Disney’s Aladdin on Broadway and the Australian National Tour (Helpmann Nomination). Other credits in his home country—Australia—include the national tours of both Pippin (Pippin) and Rodger’s & Hammerstein’s Cinderella (Prince Topher). Also Kiss of the Spiderwoman (Molina), Merrily We Roll Along (Charley Kringas), The Normal Heart (Felix), Xanadu (Sonny), Watershed: The Death of Dr. Duncan (Lost Boy), and Hi-5 (host). He is a proud graduate of the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, and his work on Boop! is dedicated to his dear friend Diana and the Perini family. @ainsleymelham
ERICH BERGEN (Raymond) is best known as Blake Moran on the hit television show “Madam Secretary,” and for his performance as Bob Gaudio in the film Jersey Boys, reprising his performance from the National Tour and Las Vegas casts of the Tony Award-winning stage musical. On Broadway, Erich also starred in the musicals Waitress and Chicago, and has been featured on the television shows “BULL,” “The Good Fight” and “Gossip Girl” among many others. Erich is also the creative force behind 6W Entertainment, a full service production company that has produced over 200 projects for television and live events. @erichbergen
STEPHEN DeROSA (Grampy). Broadway: Mr. Saturday Night, Gary: A Sequel, On the Town, Betrayal, The Nance, Hairspray, Twentieth Century, Henry IV, Into the Woods, The Man Who Came to Dinner. Off-Broadway: Little Shop of Horrors, The Alchemist, The Government Inspector, These Paper Bullets!, Love’s Fire (The Acting Company),The Mystery of Irma Vep.  Regional:  Bay Street Theater, George Street Playhouse, Paper Mill Playhouse, Arena Stage, Yale Rep.  Film/TV:  “A Holiday Spectacular,” “Blue Bloods,” “The Blacklist,” HBO’s “Boardwalk Empire” (Eddie Cantor). MFA: Yale.
ANGELICA HALE (Trisha) is an inspiring 16-year-old singer-songwriter and actress from Atlanta, Georgia who sang her way into the hearts of America on Season 12 of “America’s Got Talent” in 2017 and “America’s Got Talent: The Champions in 2019.” She has performed all over the world since and made numerous television appearances on shows like “Little Big Shots,” the “Today Show,” etc. Her videos and original music have amassed hundreds of millions of views on her YouTube channel. Today, she continues performing and writing music, now setting her sights on the bright lights of Broadway.
ANASTACIA McCLESKEY (Carol). Some favorite credits include – BROADWAY: Revival of Caroline or Change, Waitress, Violet, The Book of Mormon, Priscilla Queen of the Desert; LONDON: Close to You, What’s it All About; TV/FILM: “The Good Fight,” “New Amsterdam,” “Madam Secretary,” “Annie – Live,” upcoming “Waitress Live!;” FAVORITE REGIONAL: Joanne in RENT & Celie in The Color Purple @ The Muny (Best Performer in a Musical – St. Louis Theater Circle), Muse in Disney’s Hercules @ Paper Mill, JO in Afterwords @ The 5th Ave; #hellobeautifulspirits Podcast 11/23; Nominated for a Helen Hayes Award, Alliance Award, & an Audelco Award. Asé
LAWRENCE ALEXANDER he/him/they (Ensemble). Boston Conservatory graduate, Lawrence danced with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago after school. Bway credits: Follies, Anything Goes and The Lion King.  1st Nat/Young Frankenstein, The Band Wagon (Encores!), Showboat (Carnegie Hall)! He recently performed in the “NBCU UPFronts” at RCMH.
TRISTEN BUETTEL (Ensemble u/s Betty). Broadway: OBC Bad Cinderella. Off-Broadway/Tour: Jersey Boys. Regional: Anne of Green Gables (Goodspeed), Ever After (The Alliance), MT Wichita. NYC native and Syracuse University alum. Huge thank you to Jerry, Rachelle, Daniel Hoff, & John. Always for Mom & Dad! @tristenjadee
COLIN BRADBURY (Ensemble, u/s Raymond & Grampy). 21+ years in the biz. 4 Broadway shows. 7 National Tours. Countless Regional Theater. 2 Tonys. 1 GMA. 1 Macy’s Parade. 1 Christmas Spectacular. 2 Feature Films. 2 TV Shows. 1 Theme Park. 10+ Years Married. Dog Dad Extraordinaire. Ciao!
JOSHUA BURRAGE (Ensemble). BOOP YEAH! Broadway: Cats (2016 Revival). National Tours: Disney’s Newsies, A Bronx Tale. TV/Film: “Imaginary Friends” (Paramount Pictures), “The Gilded Age” (HBO), “West World” (HBO), “Newsies: LIVE” (Disney+). All the thanks to my incredible parents, and Rebecca & Sofia at CESD!
GABI CAMPO (Ensemble; u/s Betty; u/s Trisha). Broadway: Some Like it Hot (Society Syncopator), Beetlejuice (Miss Argentina), West Side Story (2020 Revival, u/s Anita), The Prom (u/s Emma, Alyssa). Television: “Billions,” ”FBI: Most Wanted,” “Helpsters.” Regional: Legally Blonde (The Muny, Serena). BFA Pace University. LA Native. 
DAN CASTIGLIONE he/him (Ensemble) is a dancer, actor and singer from New Jersey. His credits include Yes Day, Isn’t it Romantic and West Side Story at the Milwaukee Repertory Theater. He’s extremely excited to be a part of this amazing BOOP! cast!