Andy Karl to Replace Steve Kazee in Broadway-Bound Pretty Woman: The Musical

Three-time Tony nominee Andy Karl has been announced to take over the role of Edward Lewis from Tony winner Steve Kazee in the Broadway-bound Pretty Woman: The Musical. Kazee, who played the role in the pre-Broadway mounting at Chicago's Oriental Theatre, has departed the main-stem transfer for family reasons. Pretty Woman: The Musical, based on the late Garry Marshall's hit 1990 film, will begin previews at Broadway's Nederlander Theatre on July 20 with an opening night scheduled for August 16.

"Andy Karl is one of the funniest and most heartwarming actors I have had the pleasure of directing," said director/choreographer Jerry Mitchell (who previously worked with Karl on Legally Blonde). "He is an actor of great integrity and finds the humanity in the characters he portrays, plus he has an incredible voice. It will be a joy to work with Andy again as he brings Edward to life for all of Broadway opposite the exquisite Samantha Barks as Vivian. We couldn't be more thrilled and grateful he agreed to step in to join the Pretty Woman company."

"I always figured I'd be playing the part of 'audience member' for Pretty Woman," said Karl. "When [producer] Paula Wagner and my longtime friend, Jerry Mitchell, asked if I would take over the role of Edward, it was a total surprise. I was already a fan of the show after watching my wife (Orfeh) in the pre-Broadway workshops and then during the run in Chicago. She's part of a tremendously talented cast. Also, I was lucky enough to be friends with the great Garry Marshall, having worked with him before, and he created one of the most romantic stories of the twentieth century, so it didn't take much arm-twisting to get me to agree."

Karl most recently appeared on Broadway in a Tony-nominated and Olivier-winning turn as Phil Connors in Groundhog Day. His Broadway résumé also includes Tony-nommed performances in On the Twentieth Century and Rocky as well as roles in The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Wicked, Jersey Boys, 9 to 5, Legally Blonde, The Wedding Singer and Saturday Night Fever. Karl's off-Broadway credits include Altar Boyz, Slut and Saturday Night.

In addition to Karl as Edward, Barks as Vivian and Tony nominee Orfeh as Kit De Luca, the principal company of Pretty Woman includes Jason Danieley as Phillip Stuckey, Eric Anderson as Mr. Thompson and Kingsley Leggs as James Morse. The musical's ensemble features Allison Blackwell, Tommy Bracco, Brian Calì, Robby Clater, Jessica Crouch, Nico DeJesus, Anna Eilinsfeld, Matt Farcher, Lauren Lim Jackson, Renée Marino, Ellyn Marie Marsh, Jillian Mueller, Jake Odmark, Jennifer Sanchez, Matthew Stocke, Alex Michael Stoll, Alan Wiggins, Jesse Wildman and Darius Wright.

Pretty Woman: The Musical features a score by chart-topping rocker Bryan Adams and Jim Vallance and a book by the film's screenwriter J.F. Lawton and late director Garry Marshall. The show will have set design by David Rockwell, costume design by Gregg Barnes, lighting design by Kenneth Posner and Philip S. Rosenberg, sound design by John Shivers and hair design by Josh Marquette. Music supervision, arrangements and orchestrations are by Will Van Dyke.