Recently, my roommate and I went to see Chicago on Broadway, currently starring Whitney Leavitt. Considering her very recent jump to fame and little prior experience with singing or acting, we weren’t sure what this show would entail with her as one of the leads. Either way, the two of us wouldn’t pass up the opportunity for entertainment such as this.
Who is Whitney Leavitt?
My first introduction to Whitney Leavitt was the day that the Dancing With the Stars 2025 cast was announced. Many others know her from The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, where she and seven other Mormon mothers display their lives, personalities, and drama for the world. Shortly after the Dancing With the Stars season began, I decided to watch The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, mostly because I heard so much talk about Whitney. Others seemed to believe she had taken on an antagonistic persona during the first season, but that was not my belief. I don’t really think she did much wrong, but I definitely was not her biggest fan. As Whitney continued to compete on Dancing With the Stars, she slowly won my favor. I definitely cannot speak on the quality of her character (especially considering I don’t actually know her), but I do think she has a great stage persona and is funny across social media. If we ignore the video of her dancing alongside her child in the NICU, I think I have a pleasant opinion of her overall. Soon after her time on Dancing with the Stars, Leavitt announced she was joining the cast of Chicago on Broadway. The media exploded, everybody was asking whether or not she could sing, or if she deserved the part, and others rushed to buy tickets. Now she has been starring as Roxie Hart since Feb. 2, 2026. Since then, she has moved to New York City, launched a soda shop there, and hinted at starring in an upcoming movie.
Chicago the Musical
Chicago has been running at the Ambassador Theater since June 1975. The story is set in Chicago during the Jazz Age in the 1920s. It is based on reporters during the age and their fascination with homicides committed by women. The idea was that attractive women were never subject to punishment for their crimes, and this is the story followed throughout the musical. The main characters, Roxie and Velma, were based on real women who murdered their husbands or lovers and were acquitted in court, getting away with it. They were backed by a real-life Billy Flynn, who, in the show, helped the women get away with their crimes in court. In 1976, the show was nominated for 13 Tonys and has upheld this reputation. Since then, “Chicago” has gone on to hold the title of second-longest-running show on Broadway, just after “The Phantom of the Opera”.
Stunt Casting
Stunt casting is a technique used throughout Broadway shows in order to gain more popularity and traction. Many producers will hire people who are well known throughout television or any media and theater, so that more people want to come to the show. Because Chicago has been on Broadway for so long, most people with any wish to see it have already done so, and it’s not as popular as it once was. By casting Whitney Leavitt, new flocks of people are coming to see shows, even including those never been interested in Broadway. Stunt casting as a whole faces many critiques due to its neglect of those who have spent their whole lives training and hoping for an opportunity on Broadway. However, many argue that the more crowds celebrities bring to Broadway, the more opportunities there will be for others who care about the art.
My Opinion
I’ll start off by saying that I’ve never seen “Chicago” before, and as for the show itself, I was incredibly entertained from beginning to end. The music is wonderful to listen to, but as always, even more fun to hear in person. I didn’t know too much about the show going in, except for the most popular songs like “All That Jazz,” “Cell Block Tango,” and “Mr. Cellophane.” They were very fun to watch in person, and the choreography associated with each one was fascinating and exciting. Right off the bat, Sophie Carmen-Jones did an incredible rendition of “All That Jazz”, totally blowing me away. The show continued on with the same amount of wow. Just like any Broadway show, the amount of talent on the stage was astounding, and our seats in the orchestra allowed my roommate and me to see the acting right up close. The ensemble was one of my favorite parts, consisting of five men and five women to back up the main characters. Sophie Carmen-Jones continued to do a wonderful job as Velma. Her voice was strong and impressive, so she made it seem very easy to be singing these songs while putting on the performance in a convincing way that she was.
As for Whitney, her acting in the show was on the same level of acting on the Dancing with the Stars stage. In my opinion, she varied between about three facial expressions and sounded just like herself when talking. It may be only because I knew her outside of the show itself, but it seemed very much like I was just watching Whitney and not Roxie Hart. I do believe she had a good stage presence and felt comfortable being on the stage, but she just didn’t entirely convince me of the character. Her voice was subpar, but not horrible. In songs when she was on her own, like “Roxie”, she did quite a good job, and I was somewhat impressed with her talent. I’m not sure if I would have been blown away seeing any other Broadway star performing with her skill level, but for the amount of time she’s put into her singing, she definitely did not do a bad job. However, as the show progresses, Roxie and Velma begin to sing together and this is when her skill level becomes more apparent. Sophie Carmen-Jones as Velma had just too great of a voice to work with Whitney’s. Notes that flowed smoothly out of Carmen-Jones’s vocal cords were an obvious strain for Whitney Leavitt. At some points, like in “Nowadays/ Hot Honey Rag,” when the two sang side-by-side, it was quite hard to even hear Leavitt when Velma’s voice was so strong and powerful. All of this said, Whitney Leavitt did provide an entertaining rendition of Roxie Hart, and while the choreography and script is made to be that entertaining, I think that her personality brought a level of excitement to the character and show itself. The talent may have been greater with someone classically trained (or at least more trained than she), but it was still very fun to watch someone whom I saw on television for so long playing this character in front of me.