FORMER Coronation Street star is set to perform in the longest-running American musical, joining forces with an X Factor semi-finalist.
Soap actress Faye Brookes, best known for her trailblaizing storyline as Kate Connor in Coronation Street, will be playing Roxie Hart in the musical Chicago.
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Set amidst the decadence of the 1920s, Chicago is the story of Roxie Hart, a housewife and nightclub dancer who murders her on-the-side lover after he threatens to walk out on her.
Desperate to avoid conviction, she dupes the public, the media and her rival cellmate, Velma Kelly, by hiring Chicago’s slickest criminal lawyer to transform her malicious crime into a barrage of sensational headlines, the likes of which might just as easily be ripped from today’s tabloids.
Faye, 37, said: “I’m so unbelievably grateful to be returning to play the role Roxie Hart. I adore her. Always have. Always will.
“She’s such an interesting character that I discover something new about her every day.
“There’s a reason why it’s the longest running American musical, everyone can relate to the story in some way. To me it’s the perfect musical, there’s something for everyone.”
Faye previously played Roxie Hart to acclaim in the 2021 UK and Ireland tour of the show.
Her other theatre credits include Fran in Baz Luhrmann’s Strictly Ballroom The Musical.
Faye won the National Television Award for Most Popular Newcomer for her role as Kate Connor in Coronation Street in 2017.
Kate’s doomed romance with Rana Habeeb made them one of the soap’s most popular couples, but Rana was killed in a factory roof collapse in March 2019.
Shortly after, Kate’s final scenes aired in an hour-long episode, where she left Weatherfield to travel the world.
She said goodbye to her family and friends in the Rovers, including her dad Johnny, step mum Jenny, sister Carla, and ex-girlfriend Sophie.
Faye then appeared in the thirteenth series of Dancing on Ice in 2021, where she finished in second place.
Now, in Chicago, Faye will star alongside singer Brenda Edwards, 55, who will play Mama Morton.
Brenda soared to fame as a semi-finalist on The X Factor, panelist on Loose Women and role as Motormouth Maybelle in West End’s Hairspray.
Coronation Street’s 2024 shock exits
Corrie has said goodbye to several cast members this year. Let’s break down who’s left the famous soap:
Eliza Woodrow (Savannah Kunyo) has said farewell to Corrie to start a new life in Germany.
The youngster moved to live with her dad Dom Everett, who went back on the £10,000 bribe Eliza’s grandfather Stu had offered to keep him out of her life.
Paul Foreman (Peter Ash) will bow out of the soap this summer when he loses his fight with motor neurone disease (MND) in tragic scenes.
After being diagnosed last year, the fan favourite was devastated to learn he only had months left to live.
Viewers know he is planning to take his own life to end his suffering.
Summer Spellman (Harriet Bibby) departed the cobbles after being offered the opportunity of a lifetime to study in America.
Though she struggled to decide with her stepdad Paul’s impending death from MND, she was convinced she had to live her life to the full.
Simon Barlow (Alex Bain) has struggled with the sudden departure of his father Peter from the cobbles.
The Weatherfield legend left his family and loved ones behind on Boxing Day, 2023, when his wife Carla Connor encouraged him to travel around the world with a friend.
Simon’s been on a downward spiral ever since and his exit could end in tragedy.
Alya Nazir is set to leave the cobbles as actress Sair Khan prepares to go on maternity leave ahead of the birth of her first child.
It looks likely she’ll be heading to Dublin after securing a lucrative new job, leaving her colleague and fling Adam Barlow behind.
Show stalwart Sue Cleaver, who plays Eileen Grimshaw, is taking a break to star in the Sister Act The Musical UK tour. She will be back filming in May once her dates on the tour come to an end.
Her character left the Street after her son Jason broke his back after falling off a moped in Asia.
Brenda said: “For me it’s the songs, the razzle dazzle of it all, and the character – she’s an amazing boss lady!
“The music and the choreography go hand in hand, it’s a slick and smooth production, that’s timeless.
“It’ll never be outdated, it’s a classic. It’s also loosely based on real events that happened in the 1920s – it’s amazing to see that transformed into this musical in this way.”
This comes after Brenda discussed the shock she felt after being diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, and the lasting side effects she deals with each day.
Brenda was performing as Motormouth Maybelle in ‘Hairspray The Musical’ during the time when she found what she describes as a “frozen pea” sized lump in her breast, while taking a shower.
And when she got her diagnosis, the star said she had to take her phone along to record everything the oncologist was telling her, as she went “completely blank,” and also went alone.
Brenda told The Sun: “When I was told I had cancer I went into a blank, and so when I went to see my oncologist, I took a phone with me, and I said ‘please can I record this because whatever you’re about to say, I won’t remember it.’
“And I recorded everything and I’m so glad I did, because I had so many questions later on.”
After her diagnosis, it was full speed ahead for Brenda, as the talented performer would have “chemo on a Thursday and be on stage on a Friday.”
Brenda was afraid that the chemotherapy would impact her musical abilities though, as a tube was placed very close to her vocal chords.
She explained: “I had a port put into my neck to administer the chemotherapy. The tube was near to my vocal cords. And one of my side effects from the chemotherapy was dry mouth.
“And I’m a singer, so I was eating lozenges, honey and lemon glycerin lozenges. I was using mental minty mouth spray. I was drinking so much water, you know?”
She praised her Hairspray cast and Loose Women co-stars for all their support during what Brenda has said was an especially “rough” time.
Chicago runs from November 19 to 23 at the Mayflower Theatre.
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