Australian Ainsley Melham to Star in Boop! The Musical on Broadway

Principal casting for the new Broadway musical BOOP! The Musical has been announced and tickets are on sale today, with Australian Ainsley Melham to star as Dwayne.

Ainsley starred as Aladdin in Disney’s Aladdin on Broadway and the Australian National Tour (Helpmann Nomination). Other credits in his home country—Australia—include the national tours of Wicked (Fiyero), Pippin (Pippin), and Rodger’s & Hammerstein’s Cinderella (Prince Topher). Also Kiss of the Spiderwoman (Molina), Merrily We Roll Along (Charley Kringas), The Normal Heart (Felix), Xanadu (Sonny), Watershed: The Death of Dr. Duncan (Lost Boy), and Hi-5 (host). He is a graduate of the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, and his work on Boop! is dedicated to his dear friend Diana and the Perini family. @ainsleymelham

Following an engagement in Chicago last year, previews of BOOP! The Musical will begin on March 11, 2025.  The new family musical will open officially at Broadway’s Broadhurst Theatre (235 West 44^th Street) on Saturday, April 5, 2025. 

Tickets to BOOP! The Musical are now available at Telecharge.com or by calling 212-239-6200. Group sales available through Group Sales Box Office or by calling 1-800-Broadway.

The principal cast of BOOP!, who received critical acclaim in the Chicago pre-Broadway run last year, is headed by Jasmine Amy Rogers as Betty Boop and Tony Award®-winner Faith Prince as Valentina, Ainsley Melham as Dwayne, Erich Bergen as Raymond, Stephen DeRosa as Grampy, Anastacia McCleskey as Carol, Angelica Hale as Trisha,Phillip Huber (Pudgy the Dog), and Aubie Merrylees as Oscar. 

Additional casting will be announced soon.

Tony Award^®-winning director/choreographer Jerry Mitchell (Kinky Boots) brings the Queen of the Screen to the theater in BOOP! The Musical, with celebrated multiple Grammy^® Award-winning composer David Foster (“You’re The Inspiration,” “I Will Always Love You”), Tony Award^®-nominated lyricist Susan Birkenhead (Working, Jelly’s Last Jam) and Tony Award^®-winning book writer Bob Martin (The Drowsy Chaperone). 

Director and choreographer Jerry Mitchell said, “I am over the moon that our Chicago principal cast will be joining us on the journey to Broadway. Everyone embodies the infectious positive spirit of Betty Boop, and I can’t wait to get back in the rehearsal room to bring BOOP! to Broadway.”

For almost a century, Betty Boop, created by animation pioneer Max Fleischer, has won hearts and inspired fans around the world with her trademark looks, voice, and style. Now, in BOOP! The Musical, Betty's dream of an ordinary day off from the super-celebrity in her black-and-white world leads to an extraordinary adventure of color, music, and finding love in New York City — one that reminds her and the world, “You are capable of amazing things.” 

The design and creative team for BOOP! The Musical includes Tony Award^®-winner David Rockwell (She Loves Me),scenic design; Three-time Tony Award^®-winner Gregg Barnes (Some Like It Hot), costume design; Philip S. Rosenberg(Mrs. Doubtfire), lighting design; Tony Award^®-winner Gareth Owen (MJ: The Musical), sound design; Tony Award^®-winnerFinn Ross (Back to the Future), projection design; Emmy Award^®-winner Sabana Majeed (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”), hair and wig design; Michael Clifton (Gypsy), makeup design; OBIE Award^®-winner Skylar Fox (Once Upon a Mattress), illusions design; The Huber Marionettes (Suspended Animation), marionette design; Tony Award^®-winner Daryl Waters (A Wonderful World), music supervision and arrangements; Three-time Tony Award^®-winner Doug Besterman (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory), Orchestrations; Rick Fox (The Who’s TOMMY), music director; and Tony Award^®-nomineeZane Mark (A Wonderful World), dance music arrangements. Casting is by Tara Rubin, CSA and Kevin Metzger, CSA.DB Bonds is Associate Director, Rachelle Rak and Jon Rua are Associate Choreographers, and General Management is by Foresight Theatrical.

BOOP! The Musical premiered at Broadway In Chicago’s CIBC Theatre November 19 through December 24, 2023, opening December 6, 2023. 

BOOP! The Musical is based on the characters created by Max Fleischer. 

ABOUT BETTY BOOP AND FLEISCHER STUDIOS

First introduced in 1930, Betty Boop was created by Max Fleischer for his “Talkartoons” series, the world’s first animated “talkies” which Max’s company, Fleischer Studios, produced for Paramount Studios. Betty initially appeared as a dog-like stage performer who sang and danced with another dog-like character named Bimbo, joyfully entertaining vast audiences of other Fleischer characters from the animal kingdom.  

Inspired by the collective energy, style, and sound of the many popular Jazz Age flappers and entertainers of the 1920s, Betty quickly evolved into a full-fledged human character, and by 1932 she had become the only female animated screen star in the world. Voiced by Mae Questel, Betty starred in more than 100 cartoons, 90 of which are included in the official Betty Boop series, which ended in 1939. Since then, Betty has appeared in dozens of hit movies, television specials, commercials, and was the first cartoon character to be profiled by A&E’s Biography series. 

Today, Fleischer Studios and their great team of creative professionals, have parlayed the iconic Betty Boop into a worldwide licensing phenomenon entertaining millions of fans and collectors alike. Please visit them online at www.fleischerstudios.com and www.bettyboop.com. 

Connect with BOOP! The Musical:

Facebook: @boopthemusical 

Instagram: @boopthemusical 

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TikTok: @boopthemusical 

YouTube: @boopthemusical