‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ winner Jinkx Monsoon to make their Broadway debut in ‘Chicago’ at the Booth Theater
Jinkx Monsoon has made a name for herself performing and writing in Los Angeles, notably for director and playwright Lisa Kron; she’ll join a roster of stars at Broadway’s Booth Theater, making her Broadway debut.
Kron created and starred in “Chicago,” which opens on Friday, October 8, and whose title is based on the legendary musical. She was already a big star when she wrote the musical, inspired by the world-changing experiences of a young woman named Dorothy Allison, and then produced it in Los Angeles. She then starred, directed and won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her performance.
Monsoon will play Marnie, a lesbian social worker and single mother who makes a home run at the opera. When the opera is suddenly canceled due to a strike and her boyfriend leaves for another city, Marnie struggles to make ends meet as a single mom, struggling to find the love and joy in her life.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to be invited to sit down with Jinkx and talk about my career and her career as well, which is something I’ve always wanted to do, and I’ve been fortunate enough to land the great Marnie Monsoon,” Kron said in a statement. “I’m very excited about writing Chicago, and to have someone as talented as Jinkx Monsoon on Broadway is something I’m also very excited to be a part of.”
Monsoon’s casting is one of the biggest surprises in the Broadway staging, which was not announced until after the announcement of the winning finalists.
Kron was a big celebrity when she wrote and starred in “Chicago” and had just won the Tony Award for Best Actress, but never imagined she’d be cast as a lesbian. That’s true for Monsoon as well, who has always embraced her sexuality.
“I grew up a gay kid, I wanted to be an actress, and I ended up getting cast in a musical. So I’ve always been attracted to people who are different,” she said in 2013. “I was doing theater on and off, and I’ll always keep this in my back pocket.