Dolly says Hello, Bette!… again

So, who will replace Bernadette Peters when she leaves the smash revival of Hello, Dolly!, as scheduled, on 15 July 2018?

Why, none other than Bette Midler. Yes, the very same Bette Midler that Bernadette Peters replaced when she became Dolly Gallagher Levi this past January. And Midler will be with the show from 17 July until its final curtain now set for 25 August.

This latest redo of the Jerry Herman-Michael Stewart classic, with Midler headlining, started previews on 15 March 2017, with the official opening on 20 April 2017. The Midler-Dolly combo, directed by Jerry Zaks, sent tremors of delight up and down Broadway, as it smashed all kinds of box office records.

Departing Dolly with Peters will be Victor Garber, who took over the role of Horace Vandergelder, the well-to-do apple of Dolly’s eye, from Midler’s leading man, David Hyde Pierce. And, you guessed it, it’s Pierce who will be coming back for these final performances.

But that will hardly be the end of Hello, Dolly! A national tour of the production is to start on 2 October in Cleveland, Ohio, starring Betty Buckley.

In addition to its box office gold, the production garnered four Tony Awards. They were for Midler’s performance, Gavin Creel’s featured turn as Vandergelder’s clerk Cornelius Hacker, Santo Loquasto’s costumes and Best Musical Revival. Creel took a leave from the show in March, with Santino Fontana filling in as Cornelius, but is scheduled to return on 8 May.

Ron Cohen