Funny Girl

CRITIC’S PICK: Funny Girl, Fox Theatre - The story of Ziegfeld Follies gal Fanny Brice first appeared on Broadway 60 years ago, with Barbra Streisand in the lead role; she was also in the 1968 movie version, winning her first Oscar in the process. Told in flashback, the musical is set in New York City - around the period of the first World War - as Brice awaits the return of her ne’er-do-well spouse from a stint in prison.Playing Brice in the current US tour is up-and-coming starlet Katerina McCrimmon. Writer Harvey Fierstein of Kinky Boots fame has tweaked the story somewhat, removing some of its more tawdry elements, according to Broadway World. “The soap opera feeling is gone as Brice’s fame overtakes the gambling tragedies of her husband Nick Arnstein, and it plays like a heartfelt and consequential personal drama.” - Kevin C. Madigan