Steve Kazee (02) earned a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical in 2012 portraying a character from a popular film when he played Guy in the stage adaptation of the Academy Award-winning musical film “Once.”
Kazee will once again return to the stage to portray someone people know from the big screen – only this time, it’s in a much more iconic role.
Kazee was cast in the Broadway musical adaptation of the iconic 1990 romantic comedy “Pretty Woman.” In this highly popular, unconventional love story, he will play the rich and successful businessman Edward (originally played by Richard Gere) who falls in love with a prostitute named Vivian. Playing the role of Vivian (originally played by Julia Roberts) will be screen actress Samantha Barks, who is best known for her role as Éponine in the film adaptation of “Les Misérables.”
“Pretty Woman: The Musical” is based on a book co-written by the film’s director Garry Marshall and screenwriter J.F. Lawton. The original music and lyrics were penned by Grammy winner Bryan Adams and Jim Vallance, his longtime songwriting partner. Direction and choreography are by two-time Tony Award winner Jerry Mitchell (“La Cage aux Folles,” “Kinky Boots”).
“Pretty Woman: The Musical” recently completed a five-week run at the Oriental Theatre in Chicago this past Spring and will begin its run on Broadway at the Nederlander Theater in the fall of 2018.
Kazee earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in theatre from MSU in 2002. After graduation, he moved to New York and received his M.F.A. degree from the Graduate Acting Program at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.
In addition to his work on stage, Kazee has made several TV appearances. His credits this year include appearing in two episodes of the NBC crime drama “Blindspot.” Kazee also made past appearances on CBS’s “Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders,” ABC’s “Nashville” and had recurring roles on Showtime’s “Shameless” and TNT’s “Legends.”
Photo credit: Samantha Barks (Vivian) and Steve Kazee (Edward) from “Pretty Woman: The Musical.” Photo by Matthew Murphy.
