Pamela Anderson receives a standing ovation on opening night for her performance in Broadway's Chicago. The performance marks the Canadian-American actress' Broadway debut. The announcement of her casting as Roxie Hart in the Chicago musical came last month, with Anderson expressing her excitement at taking on the iconic role.
The vaudeville-style musical Chicago takes place in the early 1920s and follows two murderous inmates, Velma Kelly and Roxie Hart, as they plot a calculated, yet public and glamorous release from their shackles on death row while cultivating their dream criminal celebrity personas. The Broadway revival of the show began in 1996 (after its original 1975 to 1977 run) and still draws audiences today at NYC's Ambassador Theatre. Its continuous run spanning multiple decades crowns Chicago the second longest-running musical in Broadway history, behind only The Phantom of the Opera. In appearing as the conniving murderess, Anderson adds her name to a dauntingly impressive list of past iterations of Roxie Hart, including Liza Minelli and Renée Zellweger.
A tweet from the official Chicago The Musical Twitter account reveals the enthusiastic response Anderson received for her Broadway debut in Chicago on April 12. In the video, Anderson appears in Roxie's iconic black leotard, red lipstick, and cropped platinum hair. The actor is given a bouquet of roses to mark the momentous occasion, which she cradles as she bows proudly with the rest of the cast of the show. Another image shared by Twitter user Wilson Wong also shows Anderson bowing amid a standing ovation from the crowd. Check out the posts below:
Anderson's career as a model began with her appearance in the February 1990 issue of Playboy Magazine's "Playmate of the Month." Her career as an actor took off with her role as C.J. Parker on the series Baywatch, which ran from 1992 to 1997. The popularity of the show resulted in Anderson's persona skyrocketing to "sex symbol" status. In years since, she has appeared in a number of feature films and reality TV shows, as well as embarking on other pursuits, including lending support to philanthropic organizations and penning several books. Last month, Anderson responded to her casting in Chicago, expressing her excitement at going "from Baywatch to Broadway," and declaring that she was "letting go" and "ready to see what I’m capable of" as she took on the new challenge of live theatre.
Anderson's star persona and career have, in a number of ways, thematically mirrored that of her infamous character, Roxie Hart. The successful trajectory of her career and widely acknowledged sex appeal/charisma flaunt the kind of life Hart dreamingly croons about in songs like "Roxie." Chicago and the role of Roxie critique and satirize the misunderstood and glamorized nature of celebrity. This is particularly relevant to the actor lately, given the recent Hulu series Pam & Tommy, which follows the real-life scandal of the stolen and leaked private sex tape made by Anderson and her then-husband, Tommy Lee. Anderson did not give her permission for the series to be made and has not commented on it. Given this, Anderson's own career and experiences speak to Chicago's themes of ways that carefully sculpted star persona can often dwarf the actual person behind them — and Anderson's lauded theatrical turn as Roxie Hart thus cheekily winks at her own stardom while also keenly subverting it.
Source: Chicago The Musical / Wilson Wong