Katerina McCrimmon dazzles in “Funny Girl” at Philadelphia’s Academy of Music 

In a world with so little to be sure of, the theater gods are sweetly smiling down upon us.  

Those lucky enough to have tickets for the current national tour of Funny Girl — now playing Philadelphia’s Academy of Music through July 28, 2024 — will well understand why. 

The incandescent Katerina McCrimmon gives a spine-tingling, positively joyful performance as the inimitable Fanny Brice, filling dauntingly large shoes with the greatest of ease, as though she could carry us to musical comedy heaven for untold hours on end and never tire.  

There is, of course, no escaping the shadow of Barbra Streisand — musical theater history cannot be expounded upon without serious mention of her iconic turn originating the title role. With that in mind, McCrimmon and director Michael Mayer pepper in a handful of Streisand-isms to give many in the audience some notes of hoped-for homage and familiarity.  

However, McCrimmon doesn’t need to ride anyone’s coattails. Her take on Brice is no imitation. Anyone with regrets for missing Lea Michele or Beanie Feldstein on Broadway in this same Mayer-helmed production will find them summarily washed away long before intermission. McCrimmon is that good. In a perfect world, this would be a star-making performance for her as well.  

To witness McCrimmon as Fanny Brice is to be buffeted by a ruby-throated gust of wind one moment, cackle with laughter the next, and — particularly in Act 2 — be deeply touched by her grace and vulnerability. She has silent film, Olive Oyl eyes that telegraph like search lights up past the balcony. She is not a mere singer of songs but an actress who sings, never wasting a line or syllable, mining them for every laugh and dramatic hush without ever resorting to hammy theatrics. It’s impossible to take your eyes off of her for all the right reasons. 

Only an actress of her talent could convince you she’s anything less than stunning (a major trope in Act 1) for more than ten seconds. The production helps her accomplish this by surrounding her with a surplus of statuesque chorus girls with legs for days who skillfully sing and dance to suit the material. They — along with their highly capable male counterparts — also know how to delightfully frame and match McCrimmon’s comic finesse and keep the energy moving. The same goes for Izaiah Montaque Harris as Eddie Ryan, whose expert tap dancing is a pleasure to behold, and Walter Coppage, who delivers a sharp, highly memorable performance as Florenz Zeigfeld, Fanny’s embattled but affectionate boss. 

The legendary Melissa Manchester is also a delight in the featured role of Fanny’s daffy mother. She handles the innately Jewish, New York humor of the book with expert ease, dishing hurts-so-good barbs and motherly concern with equal aplomb. Her commitment to the comportment of the character (think Edith Bunker with sharper quips) may come as a surprise to those accustomed to her as a classy balladeer of popular song, and her vocal delivery is sprinkled with just enough Judy Holliday by way of Renee Taylor as to be comfortable, cozy and comically effective. When the script calls for a rare dramatic moment for Mrs. Brice, she delivers it with sensitivity and skill. (You can read our 2021 interview with Miss Manchester here).

The only notable misstep is Stephen Mark Lucas’ take on Fanny’s love interest Nick Arnstein, played famously in the Streisand film version by Omar Sharif. Lucas has the chiseled, James Marsden good looks to fit the general bill of the character, and he certainly sings well and dutifully executes Ellenore Scott’s smart choreography, but he embodies only Arnstein’s ambition and sleaziness, with none of his sophistication, warmth or debonair charm. These are qualities Funny Girl needs to properly chug along. Without them, we are left to question why Fanny’s candle for Nick burns so brightly — nearly half the score is about precisely that.

Yet this feels like a small point, almost a quibble. After all, the show is called Funny Girl, and this production belongs in every sense to McCrimmon, who gives a performance so impressive as to be worthy of comparison to the likes of Angela Lansbury, Chita Rivera, or even Streisand herself. For two hours and forty minutes she transports you far from the doldrums of everyday life to a realm of complete and total pleasure. It’s like savoring a decadent piece of cheesecake with none of the calories. 

That is precisely what musical comedy is all about.

ensembleartsphilly.org/events-and-tickets/2023-24/broadway/funny-girl