Opening Night

Hello, Dolly! Is Lookin' Swell for Its Broadway Opening

Bette Midler celebrates her return to Broadway where she belongs.

Bette Midler as Dolly Levi in the Broadway revival of Hello, Dolly! at the Shubert Theatre.
Bette Midler as Dolly Levi in the Broadway revival of Hello, Dolly! at the Shubert Theatre.
(© Julieta Cervantes)

Bette Midler makes her official Broadway return tonight as the latest revival of Hello, Dolly! opens at the Shubert Theatre.

Directed by Jerry Zaks and choreographed by Warren Carlyle, Hello, Dolly! began preview performances on March 15. In addition to Midler, who leads the cast as matchmaker Dolly Levi, the cast stars David Hyde Pierce as Horace Vandergelder, with Kate Baldwin as Irene Molloy, Gavin Creel as Cornelius Hackl, Jennifer Simard as Ernestina, Beanie Feldstein as Minnie Fay, Taylor Trensch as Barnaby Tucker, Melanie Moore as Ermengarde, and Will Burton as Ambrose Kemper.

Based on Thornton Wilder's The Matchmaker, Michael Stewart and Jerry Herman's Hello, Dolly! first premiered on Broadway in 1964, starring Carol Channing in the title role. The most recent revival, in 1995, starred Channing in a return appearance. In addition to Channing, the role has been played by Pearl Bailey, Phyllis Diller, Betty Grable, Martha Raye, Ginger Rogers, Ethel Merman (in her last appearance on Broadway), and Mary Martin, who led the West End company.

For tickets and more information, click here.