Fan-Favorite Musicals Take Front and Center at Broadway in Bryant Park Week 3

As soon as seating for Broadway in Bryant Park’s third 2024 concert opened (an hour and a half before the July 26 show) swarms of fans raced to grab any available folding chair as though they were shoppers on Black Friday. To understand a likely reason for this, all one needs to do is look at the day’s lineup of shows.

Hosted by LITE FM and iHeartRadioBroadway, the third of four Broadway in Bryant Park lunchtime concerts saw six fan-favorite shows perform. There to move things along were concert hosts Rich Kaminski of LITE FM 106.7, and Jacqueline B. Arnold (La Chocolat/Ensemble in “Moulin Rouge! The Musical”), who would later perform too.

They introduced ”The Great Gatsby,” this year’s Broadway.com Audience Choice winner for Favorite New Musical, to get things started. The show, inspired by the book of the same name by F. Scott Fitzgerald, brought two numbers to the concert.

First, Dan Rosales (Nick understudy at Bryant Park) and Dariana Mullen (Jordan understudy at Bryant Park) performed “Better Hold Tight,” a duet from the beginning of the show’s second act. This was one of several songs throughout the concert to include choreography, with the two slow dancing as though they were onstage at the Broadway Theatre. Next, Jeff Kready (Jay Gatsby understudy at Bryant Park) performed the powerful ballad, “Past is Catching Up to Me.”

Next was“Moulin Rouge! The Musical” which won the Best Musical Tony in 2020. The show brought three songs, and high spirits, with everyone excited for the fan-favorite jukebox musical celebrating its fifth year on Broadway that day. “Moulin Rouge! The Musical” at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre is based on the movie of the same name, and features many of that movie’s songs alongside familiar modern music from the likes of Beyoncé and Adele.

First, Arnold, Sophie Carmen-Jones (Nini), Heather Makalani (Ensemble), and Andrés Quintero (Baby Doll) sang “Lady Marmalade” as sung by Christina Aguilera, Mýa, Pink and rapper Lil’ Kim in the “Moulin Rouge!” movie. This is a number familiar to those who have attended Broadway in Bryant Park concerts in previous years, and featured some choreography along with it. Next was Hailee Kaleem Wright and Jack Cahill-Lemme to perform “Your Song” by Elton John, which also appears in the original “Moulin Rouge!” movie. Then, Wright remained onstage to sing Katy Perry’s “Firework,” a song added for the Broadway musical.

2011’s Best Musical Tony winner, “The Book of Mormon,” was third to perform. Paul Schwensen (Standby Elder Price) and Cody Jamison Strand (Elder Cunningham) performed “You and Me (But Mostly Me),” and then the former remained for “I Believe.” Even after more than a decade on Broadway, the show still makes audiences laugh, whether on Broadway at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre, or in the sunshine at Broadway in Bryant Park.

Next up was the second of three shows which debuted on Broadway this season, “Suffs.” Running at the Music Box Theatre, “Suffs” tells the story of the women’s suffrage movement, and the women who were a part of it, and won Tony Awards in 2024 for its book and score, both written by “Suffs” star Shaina Taub.

Nadia Dandashi (Doris Stevens) and D’Kaylah Unique Whitley (swing, playing Dudley Malone at Bryant Park) started things off with the song “If We Were Married,” exemplifying the show’s trademark blend of history, reality, and wit. One noteworthy element of “Suffs” is that its cast is entirely made up of women and nonbinary individuals, with some playing male roles. It is one of two shows performing at Bryant Park this year to utilize this method of casting, to be joined by “SIX The Musical” on Aug. 1. After that, Emily Skinner (Alva Belmont/Phoebe Burn) and guitarist TKTK performed “A Letter From Harry’s Mother.” This marked the first song performed for Broadway in Bryant Park this year with live accompaniment.

Rounding out the shows from the 2023-2024 Broadway season, “The Notebook” was next to take to the Broadway in Bryant Park stage. Based on the book and movie by the same name, The Notebook is running at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre, and tells the story of Noah and Allie at three different times in their lives—their younger years, the time in the middle and their older years. The story is not told chronologically, but is built piece by piece throughout.

“The Notebook” brought three songs to Bryant Park. First, Jordan Tyson (Younger Allie) and John Cardoza (Younger Noah) sang “Carry You Home,” a duet from early on in both the show and the story of Allie and Noah’s relationship. Then, Tyson remained onstage to sing “If This Is Love” solo, bringing the audience a bit further through the musical’s emotional journey. Finally, Alex Benoit (swing, playing Middle Noah at Bryant Park) went back to slightly earlier in the show’s script, but later in the story, to sing “Leave the Light On.”

Finally, the revival of “Chicago,” which holds the record for the longest-running musical currently on Broadway, brought a taste of the Ambassador Theatre to Bryant Park with three numbers—two of which included full choreography.

First, Mary Claire King (Velma Kelly understudy at Bryant Park) and members of the “Chicago” ensemble performed “All That Jazz.” Claire led both the singing and the Fosse-inspired dancing of the show’s iconic opening number. Then, Celina Nightengale (Matron ‘Mama’ Morton understudy at Bryant Park) impressed the crowd with her rendition of “When You’re Good to Mama.” Finally, Claire returned to the stage with Rachel Schur (Roxie Hart understudy at Bryant Park) to dance the “Hot Honey Rag,” the first Broadway in Bryant Park performance this year to not include any singing.

The final Broadway in Bryant Park was Aug. 1 but other activities for the fall can be found at Bryant Park’s website https://bryantpark.org.