Broadway Alums Henry Winkler & Kristin Chenoweth Advised Marlee Matlin to Take Spring Awakening Role

Oscar winner Marlee Matlin is set to make her Broadway debut in Spring Awakening in a few short weeks, but the decision to come to the Great White Way was not one she took lightly.

“My mind’s been blown,” Matlin told Broadway.com about her experience in rehearsal with the Deaf West production. She added that before she took the role, she consulted some of her Broadway pals for guidance: “I talked to Henry Winker and Kristin Chenoweth long and hard, two hours both,” the actress told us.

Apparently, the Fonz and Glinda gave her a thumbs up; all Matlin had to do was ask to her family for a green light.

“I asked my husband and my family and my four kids, ‘Have you ever heard of Broadway?’" Matlin recalled. "They looked at me like, ‘What?! Are you crazy or something? Of course we know Broadway!’ Matlin told them, "'Well, that’s where I’m going, is that OK with you?' When they said yes, the actress said her "whole world turned around." She added, "It’s such an honor, and it’s great to be working with everybody. It’s been 30 years since I’ve been on a stage, so we shall see how it goes."

The revival of Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater's Tony-winning Spring Awakening begins performances at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre on September 8 and opens on September 27.