“American Idol” champ Fantasia Barrino is warming her pipes for a jazzy production this fall.
The season three “Idol” winner has been confirmed as the first guest star to be featured in the Broadway musical “After Midnight.”
According to the Hollywood Reporter, the musical revue celebrates Duke Ellington’s days at Harlem’s legendary Cotton Club, and will have a rotation of headliners to mimic the big names that graced the Cotton Club’s stage at its peak.
Barrino previously proved to be a Broadway box office draw with the 2005 musical “The Color Purple.” After the Grammy-winning singer joined the show in April 2007, the flagging production saw a 40 percent sales spike, Variety reports.
Several “Idol” alums have joined the theater ranks of the Great White Way, but Barrino stands apart as the sole “Idol” participant to “drive box office to the heights that matched producers’ hopes,” the trade publication says.
“After Midnight” will begin preview performances on October 18, with an official opening scheduled for November 3. Barrino is slated to perform with the revue through February 9, 2014.
The-CNN-Wire