Lauren Ambrose Tapped to Play Fanny Brice in Bartlett Sher's Funny Girl

It looks like Lauren Ambrose has landed the coveted role of Fanny Brice in the upcoming Bartlett Sher-directed revival of Funny Girl at Los Angeles' Ahmanson Theatre, according to eonline.com's Marc Malkin. Malkin says "negotiations are currently underway" for the flame-haired star to take on role that catapulted Barbra Streisand to stardom. Presented by the Center Theatre Group, the production will begin performances on January 15, 2012, with opening night set for February 1. 

Ambrose is best known as Claire Fisher on TV's Six Feet Under, a role that earned her two Emmy nominations. She made her Broadway debut in Awake and Sing!, helmed by Sher, and also appeared on Broadway in Exit the King. Her other stage credits include Public Theater's Shakespeare in the Park productions of Romeo and Juliet (as Juliet in 2007) and Hamlet (as Ophelia in 2008). The 33-year-old actress' many TV and film credits include Can't Hardly Wait, Torchwood, Psycho Beach Party, The Return of Jezebel James, Diggers, Party of Five and Where the Wild Things Are. She also leads the jazz group Lauren Ambrose and the Leisure Class.

Featuring music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Bob Merrill and a book by Isobel Lennart, Funny Girl tells the rags-to-riches story of legendary entertainer Fanny Brice and her enduring love for rakish Nicky Arnstein. The original production opened on Broadway on March 26, 1964, starring Streisand as Fanny and Sydney Chaplin as Nicky. The show ran at three theaters for a total of 1,348 performances, closing on July 1, 1967. Streisand received an Academy Award for the 1968 film adaptation.

There is still no word on plans for a Broadway run following the Los Angeles engagement. "It's our expectation and hope that there will be a demand for a further life, and Broadway is the next step, but there is nothing specifically planned," CTG's Artistic Director Michael Ritchie said earlier this year.

Click below to watch Ambrose and her band tackle "My Man," one of the famous numbers from the movie adaptation of the musical.