For the first time in 17 years, “Chicago” is coming to Philadelphia.
The legendary musical with themes seemingly taken from what is happening in the world today, will take over the Forrest Theatre May 12-17. Tickets and more information are available at www.ensembleartsphilly.org.
“Philadelphia has a long and rich history of presenting Broadway, not only at our Academy of Music and Miller Theater on Broad Street, but at the Forrest Theatre, as well. Owned and operated by our partners at The Shubert Organization, the Forrest even hosted ‘Chicago’s’ pre-Broadway run before the show opened in New York in 1975,” said Frances Egler, vice president of Theatrical Programming and Presentations. “Now more than 50 years later, ‘Chicago’ returns to Philadelphia for the first time since 2009, a testament to its longevity through the decades and place as one of the most popular musicals of all time.”
Set in the Roaring Twenties, “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.
“Chicago” is one of the longest-running musicals on Broadway.
Tim Canali, who is part of the ensemble touring the country, feels they are introducing “Chicago” to a whole new group of fans.
“The amount of people who have never heard of ‘Chicago’ is fascinating,” said Canali. “They just come and say, ‘Oh, hey, there’s a new show in town.’ They come to see it, having no context. We share this story with them that they have no reference for.
“That’s actually been one of my favorite things, talking to people at the stage door or just talking to people around town who we are their first exposure to ‘Chicago.’ Their first exposure to this story. That’s been really cool for me.”
This is also Canali’s first time in a Broadway touring show.
“This is my first tour and first run of ‘Chicago,’ ” Canali added. “It’s been really, really lovely and a wonderful first tour experience. This show in particular, just on paper is very special to me. I think it’s a beautiful piece of American theater and the themes that it delivers are really important and pertinent. Getting to share those stories with America has been kind of a dream.”
Canali is a NYC-based actor, singer, dancer and circus artist. Recently he’s enjoyed flying high in the off-Broadway circus play “(in)Tangible,” crafting combat for striking newsboys, choreographing a world premiere love-affirming musical, and performing in numerous diverse theatrical productions around the world.
“In this day and age, you got to do it all,” Canali said. “I took my very first dance class my sophomore year at Muhlenberg College. I was totally hooked, so a bit of a late bloomer on that start. ‘Chicago’ is a great vehicle for people who kind of want to do it all, because you have to do everything. Everybody has to sing and dance.”
The show comes to Philadelphia as the last stop on the tour that started in 2025. Canali expects to see a few familiar faces in the audience.
“I do have a few people either making the trip from New York or even some of my former Muhlenberg teachers are able to make the trip,” said Canali. “Some haven’t seen me dance since college, so it’s a nice full-circle moment.”