The Museum of Broadway | New Special Exhibit Celebrating ‘Chicago’

Lisbeth Thalberg
Chicago Special Exhibition | Photo Credit: Rebecca J. Michelson

The Museum of Broadway is now showing a new special exhibit dedicated to  Broadway’s Longest Running American Musical CHICAGO. ALL THAT JAZZ: The Legacy  of CHICAGO the Musical, created exclusively for The Museum of Broadway, will be a  retrospective of CHICAGO’s 26 years on Broadway with a special focus on the iconic  production photography and ad campaigns throughout the years. Guests can get a closer look at  artifacts, stunning costumes, and even feel like they’re a part of the show in an exclusive photo activation. ALL THAT JAZZ: The Legacy of CHICAGO the Musical will open to the public on  June 30, 2023.  

Chicago Special Exhibition
Chicago Special Exhibition | Photo Credit: Rebecca J. Michelson

CHICAGO is the longest-running show currently playing on Broadway, having played over  10,000 performances since its opening in 1996. CHICAGO has played in 38 countries in more  than 525 cities and has been performed in thirteen different languages worldwide. CHICAGO has been graced by such stars as Brooke Shields, Bebe Neuwirth, Joel Grey, Pamela Anderson,  Melanie Griffith, Sofia Vergara, Brandy, Wayne Brady, Usher, Christie Brinkley and many  more. This record-breaking hit musical is now playing at the Ambassador Theatre (219 W.  49th St., NYC). 

Chicago Special Exhibition | Photo Credit: Rebecca J. Michelson
Chicago Special Exhibition | Photo Credit: Rebecca J. Michelson

The Museum of Broadway, which opened to the public November 2022, is located in the heart of  Times Square at 145 W 45th St, and is the first-ever permanent museum dedicated to the storied  history and legendary artistry of Broadway musicals, plays, and the people who make them.  Admission to this brand new special exhibit is included with any standard timed or flex ticket to The Museum of Broadway, which can be purchased at https://www.themuseumofbroadway.com/tickets.

As part of this immersive and interactive theatrical experience guests travel through a visual  history of Broadway, highlighting groundbreaking moments in a series of exhibits that showcase  – and show off – dazzling costumes, props, renderings, rare photos, videos, and more. Along the  way, guests learn more about the pivotal shows that transformed the landscape of Broadway and  the moments that pushed creative boundaries, challenged social norms, and paved the way for  those who would follow. Overall, the museum highlights more than 500 individual productions  from the 1700s-present. Some of the exhibits included throughout the timeline showcase props  and artifacts from the Broadway productions of The Phantom of the Opera, West Side Story,  Rent, Company, Cabaret, and Hamilton.  

Museum of Broadway
Guests Dance in West Side Story | Credit: Darren Cox

The museum also celebrates the behind-the-scenes of this dazzling American art form with “The  Making of a Broadway Show” exhibit, designed by David Rockwell and presented by Broadway.com, which honors the community of brilliantly talented professionals – both onstage  and off – who bring Broadway plays and musicals to life every night.

About The Museum of Broadway 

The team of expert curators for The Museum of Broadway is headed by Ben West (Timeline  Walls Curator) and also includes Jennifer Ashley Tepper (Map Room Curator), John Kenrick  (Game Changer Curator), Matthew Schneider (Text Consultant, Game Changer History),  Michael McDonald and Lisa Zinni (Costume & Props Curators), Faye Armon-Troncoso (Set  Decorator & Props Supervisor, Making of a Broadway Show). 

Museum of Broadway
Museum of Broadway Exterior sign | Photo Credit: Monique Carboni

The Museum of Broadway is founded in collaboration with Playbill, Broadway Cares/Equity  Fights AIDS, The Billy Rose Theatre Division at the New York Public Library for the  Performing Arts, The Al Hirschfeld Foundation, Goodspeed Musicals, Creative Goods, and  Concord Theatricals. 

The Museum of Broadway is produced by Julie Boardman, Diane Nicoletti, Kumiko Yoshii,  Naoya Kinoshita, Hunter Arnold & Jason Squatriglia, Wendy Federman, Merrie L. Davis, Jamie  DeRoy, Dori Berinstein, Henry Tisch, Richard D. Batchelder, Jr., Kate Cannova, Sharon  Carr/Patricia Klausner/Bard Theatrical, Nolan Doran, Sue Gilad & Larry Rogowsky, Morwin  Schmookler, Catherine Adler, Elizabeth Armstrong, Mary Avella, Brad Blume, Blumenthal  Performing Arts, Stephen Byrd, Pamela Cooper, Cue to Cue Productions, Paula Kaminsky  Davis, Natasha Davison, Karen Elizaga, Lorre Erlick, Fakston Productions, Franklin Theatrical  Group, John Gore Organization, Lesley Stewart Grilley, Haffner-Wright Theatricals, Kim &  Alan Hartman, Alia Jones-Harvey, Fern Kershon, Willette Klausner, Riki Kane Larimer, Margo  Lion Trust, Elliott & Cathy Masie, Robin Gorman Newman, Amy Schrader, Alan Seales, Iris  Smith, Concord Theatricals, Van Horn Group and The Shubert Organization, The Nederlander  Organization, and Jujamcyn Theaters. Elie Landau serves as the Museum’s general manager. 

About CHICAGO 

With a legendary book by Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse, music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred  Ebb, CHICAGO is the winner of six 1997 Tony Awards including Best Musical Revival and the  Grammy Award for Best Musical Cast Recording. 

Directed by Tony Award winner Walter Bobbie and choreographed by Tony Award winner Ann  Reinking, CHICAGO is set amidst the razzle-dazzle decadence of the 1920s and tells the story of  Roxie Hart, a housewife and nightclub dancer who murders her on-the-side lover after he  threatens to walk out on her. Desperate to avoid conviction, she dupes the public, the media and  her rival cellmate, Velma Kelly, by hiring Chicago’s slickest criminal lawyer to transform her malicious crime into a barrage of sensational headlines, the likes of which might just as easily be  ripped from today’s tabloids.  

CHICAGO is produced by Barry and Fran Weissler.

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