The 'Hacks' star joins the hit comedy on July 6
Credit: Jenny Anderson
NEED TO KNOW
- Meg Stalter is making her Broadway debut in Oh, Mary! starting July 6 at the Lyceum Theatre
- The comedy reimagines Mary Todd Lincoln as a hard-drinking woman dreaming of becoming a cabaret star
- Maya Rudolph and Cheyenne Jackson will play their final performances July 5 as new cast members join the show
Megan Stalter is already bringing plenty of laughs to Oh, Mary! — and she hasn't even begun performances yet!
PEOPLE has an exclusive look inside the rehearsal room where the Hacks breakout, 35, is preparing to make her Broadway debut beginning July 6.
Photos snapped by shutterbug to the stars Jenny Anderson offer an early glimpse at Stalter's starring turn in the smash hit comedy, which follows Mary Todd Lincoln in the days leading up to Abraham Lincoln's assassination. Written by Cole Escola and directed by Sam Pinkleton, the play is an unhinged reimagining of the former first lady, portraying her as a miserable, hard-drinking woman who dreams of escaping the White House to pursue her true passion: becoming a cabaret star.
Credit: Jenny Anderson
Judging by Anderson's snaps, Stalter appears to have Mary Todd's bratty brass down pat. Dressed in rehearsal clothes, the comedian pulls a series of exaggerated expressions, hinting at the outrageous comedy audiences can expect when the curtain rises.
Alongside Stalter in the pics is fellow cast member Barrett Foa. The actor, a stage vet known for his work on screen in NCIS: Los Angeles and The Residence, also joins the company as Mary's Teacher beginning July 6.
Stalter will remain in the role through Sept. 12. Foa will continue in the production through Dec. 6.
Credit: Jenny Anderson
Also joining the cast on July 6 is Ryo Kamibayashi (Pirates! The Penzance Musical, The Outsiders), who will play Mary's Husband's Assistant through Sept. 13. Original Broadway cast member Tony Macht will return to the role of Mary's Husband's Assistant beginning Sept. 15.
Meanwhile, Obie Award winner Phillip James Brannon, who plays Mary's Husband, and original Broadway cast member Bianca Leigh, who portrays Mary's Chaperone, have both extended their engagements through Dec. 6.
Hannah Solow, Martin Landry, Julian Manjerico and Jackie Sanders round out the current company.
Credit: Jenny Anderson
Directed by Sam Pinkleton, Oh, Mary! has become one of Broadway's biggest hits since opening at Broadway's Lyceum Theatre in July 2024, breaking box-office records and spawning a successful run in London's West End.
The new actors arrive as six-time Emmy winner Maya Rudolph and Grammy and Emmy nominee Cheyenne Jackson prepare to play their final performances on July 5.
Rudolph also made her Broadway debut in Oh, Mary! She joined a long line of stars who have followed Escola in the role of Mary Todd Lincoln, including Jane Krakowski, Tituss Burgess, Betty Gilpin, Hannah Solow, John Cameron Mitchell and two-time RuPaul's Drag Race winner Jinkx Monsoon.
Credit: Jenny Anderson
Monsoon was the one who got Stalter interested in the role. "When I saw it and I saw the amazing Jinkx [Monsoon] do it, and I was like, 'I've never felt more connected to a character,' " she previously told PEOPLE.
That feeling was echoed in a statement Stalter made when her casting was announced. “When I first met Cole Escola, they said, ‘I thought I was too old to feel this excited and giddy about a new friend,' and that's exactly how I felt when I met Mary Todd Lincoln for the first time,” she said. “I've never seen myself in a character the way I see myself in Mary.”
That said, Stalter joked to PEOPLE that she's approaching the opportunity with a surprisingly laid-back attitude.
"I feel like I'm just going to kind of wing it," she said in May. "I don't think I'm going to even learn the lines because I feel like you just get up there and kind of like, do it."
"I'm the queen of improv," she added with a laugh.
Tickets for Oh, Mary! are on sale now.
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