Laura Osnes Will Star Opposite Steven Pasquale in Chicago Carousel

Tony nominee and Broadway.com Audience Choice Award winner Laura Osnes will play Julie Jordan in the upcoming Lyric Opera production of Carousel in Chicago. She joins the previously announced stage and screen favorite Steven Pasquale, who takes on the role of Billy Bigelow, as well as Denyce Graves as Nettie Fowler. The Rob Ashford-helmed production will begin performances on April 10, 2015 and run through May 3.

Osnes made her Broadway debut in Grease, and has since starred in South Pacific, Anything Goes, Bonnie and Clyde and Cinderella. She also appeared in the off-Broadway revival of The Threepenny Opera and the Encores! concert production of Faust earlier this year.

Carousel, written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, follows the tragic romance of carousel barker Billy Bigelow (Pasquale) and mill worker Julie Jordan (Osnes). The show features a catalogue of musical theater standards including “If I Loved You,” “June Is Bustin’ Out All Over” and “You’ll Never Walk Alone.” The original production opened on Broadway on April 19, 1945. The show was revived four times, with the most recent staging winning the 1995 Tony Award for Best Revival.

Additional cast will be revealed at a later date.