Hannah Shankman Is the Next Fanny Brice in Funny Girl National Tour

Hannah Shankman will play Fanny Brice in the national tour of Funny Girl. She takes over the role from Katerina McCrimmon beginning September 24 in Seattle, WA.

Shankman was previously the standby for the role. Her Broadway credits include Wicked, Les Misérables and Side Show.

“Hannah is a marvelous Fanny Brice,” said the show's director Michael Mayer in a statement. “She brings great intelligence, humor and authenticity to the role, and she’s a terrific singer. I’ve had the pleasure of seeing her rousing theatergoers to their feet for a year now, and I am delighted that new audiences across America will also revel in her performance as she takes on the role full time.”

Shankman joins Grammy-winner Melissa Manchester as Mrs. Brice, Stephen Mark Lukas as Nick Arnstein, Izaiah Montaque Harris as Eddie Ryan, Walter Coppage as Florenz Ziegfeld, Leah Platt as Emma/Mrs. Nadler, Christine Bunuan as Mrs. Meeker, David Foley Jr. as Tom Keeney and Cheryl Stern as Mrs. Strakosh.

Rounding out the company are Vinny Andaloro, Jack Bianchi, Courtney Brady, Kate E. Cook, Connor Coughlin, Joel Douglas, Annabelle Duffy, Mathew Fedorek, Alex Hartman, Kathy Liu, Missy Marion, Bryan Charles Moore, Sami Murphy, Emily Anne Nester, Myah Segura, Brendan Sheehan, Jordon Taylor, Sean Seamus Thompson, Travis Ward-Osborn and Annaliese Wilbur.

Featuring the timeless number “Don’t Rain On My Parade," Funny Girl tells the bittersweet story of the indomitable Fanny Brice, a girl from the Lower East Side who became one of the most beloved performers in history. The score is by Jule Styne with lyrics by Bob Merrill. The book, revised by Harvey Fierstein, is by Isobel Lennart.