If “Chicago” opened on Broadway 51 years ago, what makes it so popular that the revival has had its highest-grossing week ever, with $1.4 million in ticket sales? Surprisingly enough, it’s reality TV stars.
The first Broadway performance of “Chicago” and the first Broadway appearance for star Whitney Leavitt opened on Feb. 2, 2026. This date marked the beginning of one of the most outstanding runs in the history of “Chicago’s” time on Broadway. Leavitt was cast as the Primadonna murderess, Roxie Hart, after her performance on ABC’s “Dancing With The Stars”. Leavitt was announced to be joining the cast, following her 6th overall score in DWTS, last December. This announcement by Leavitt and the “Chicago” team was handled with mixed reviews due to Leavitt’s qualifications.
Whitney Leavitt started her rise to fame by making dance videos on the social media site TikTok. While she faced her own controversies on TikTok, that didn’t stop her from being cast as one of the eight women on “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives”. This reality TV show follows Mormon wives and mothers through the challenges of their religion and posting for “MomTok”. After two seasons of SLOMW, Leavitt was cast alongside SLOMW co-star Jennifer Affleck to join season 34 of DTWS. Leavitt was partnered up with DWTS Pro Mark Ballas, and her performing career boomed from there.
Leavitt’s run in “Chicago” has now been extended twice, with the addition of her former DWTS co-star, Mark Ballas, joining April 6 and running through May 3. Both Leavitt and Ballas hold impressive dance backgrounds. Leavitt spent around 40 hours a week doing competitive dance and even graduated from Brigham Young University with a Bachelor’s in Fine Arts with a focus on dance. Ballas was born into a family of dancers and trained at the Italia Conti Performing Arts School in London. Ballas is well-versed in dancing, acting, and music, as he has performed in other Broadway shows like “Kinky Boots” and “Jersey Boys”. Leavitt has little to no background in music and singing, but a few acting credits, including a short film titled “An Uncharted Desire”.
The question that most commonly comes up when fans find out about her Broadway debut is, “Is she qualified?”
Most actors need years of training in dance, singing, and acting before even being considered to perform on Broadway. The Institute of the Arts Barcelona says, “No matter what kind of performer you are, you need some sort of training.” While this is true, there is no actual “Broadway requirement” to have years of training in the three skills that make someone a “triple threat”. These hours upon hours of training don’t count for nothing, though, as they open doors that most don’t have offered to them. Senior Berklee Axford said, “[because of Leavitt] Broadway is becoming more popular, benefiting all people a part of all shows in New York right now. However, her [Leavitt] performance isn’t world-stopping in my opinion. This isn’t necessarily her fault, as she has not been trained for years and years.”
Leavitt isn’t the only reality TV star to join a Broadway production, or even a Broadway production of “Chicago”. Ariana Madix, star of Bravo’s “Vanderpump Rules” and recent host of Peacock’s “Love Island USA,” joined the cast of “Chicago” as Roxie in 2024. Her run went from January 29 to March 24, and she helped the production reach its highest non-holiday week in 2024. Jinkx Monsoon, who won Season 5 of MTV’s “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” broke a box office record in 2023 playing Matron Mama Morton and became the first-ever drag queen to star in the Broadway revival of “Chicago”.
Though Leavitt’s privilege of being offered this role may not be loved by all, it isn’t the first time this has happened. “Chicago” is a show that is now almost completely known for its casting of celebrities, good or bad. Whether Leavitt deserves this role is up to each person to decide, but one thing that is clear is that “Chicago” keeps breaking records and remaining relevant by casting notable celebrities instead of upcoming stars.
