Pop Star Cyndi Lauper to Make B'way Debut in Threepenny Opera Revival

Pop star Cyndi Lauper will make her Broadway debut as Jenny in the upcoming Roundabout Theatre Company revival of The Threepenny Opera, according to a production spokesperson. Lauper is replacing previously announced star Edie Falco, who recently withdrew from the production.

Lauper began her career in 1980 when her band at the time, Blue Angel, released a self-titled album. In 1983, she decided to depart the group and become a solo artist. It was in 1984 with the release of her debut album, She's So Unusual that Lauper hit the big time, selling nine million copies worldwide. She's So Unusual was the first debut album and the first debut album by a solo artist to garner four top five singles, "Girls Just Want To Have Fun," "All Through The Night," "She Bop," and "Time After Time." The album also earned Lauper a Grammy Award for Best New Artist. She went on to release and co-produce True Colors, which garnered another Grammy nomination for the artist. Her other albums include A Night To Remember, A Hat Full Of Stars, Sisters Of Avalon, Merry Xmas Have a Nice Life, Shine and At Last. Lauper has been nominated for the Emmy Award twice--and won once for a guest appearance on Mad About You. With her flamboyant style, Lauper has also established herself as a fashion icon.

Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill's The Threepenny Opera serves up a dark satire of "respectable" society, with dashing thieves, saucy prostitutes, and lingering melodies. Based on Elizabeth Hauptmann's German translation of John Gay's 18th-century The Beggar's Opera , The Threepenny Opera thrusts the audience into the seedy underworld of Mack the Knife, a dapper criminal and his wry love affair with Polly Peachum.

In addition to Lauper, The Threepenny Opera, directed by Scott Elliott, will star Alan Cumming Macheath, Jim Dale Mr. Peachum, Ana Gasteyer Mrs. Peachum and Nellie McKay Polly. The musical is scheduled to begin performances at Studio 54 on March 24 in preparation for an April 20 Broadway bow.