Character guide
Jerry
from Some Like It Hot
Jerry is a lead character in Some Like It Hot, the 2022 musical comedy based on the classic film, a musician who discovers a new sense of identity while disguised as Daphne.
- Show
- Some Like It Hot
- Broadway premiere
- 2022
- Role
- Lead
- Music by
- Marc Shaiman
Jerry: from the film to Broadway
Broadway compared with the 1959 film
The musical takes Jerry's story somewhere the 1959 film only joked about. Jack Lemmon's Jerry plays Daphne as a disguise, and the film ends on Osgood's famous shrug, Well, nobody's perfect. On Broadway, J. Harrison Ghee's Jerry finds he feels more at home as Daphne than ever before, and Daphne marries Osgood and opens a club called Daphnecita's.
Ghee won the 2023 Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Musical, one of the first openly nonbinary performers to win. The stage Daphne sings You Could've Knocked Me Over With a Feather and Let's Be Bad with Osgood, and in the finale Osgood insists that Daphne is perfect.
Who is Jerry?
Jerry flees Chicago alongside his friend Joe, disguising himself as a woman named Daphne to join an all female band and escape a mob hit they witnessed. What begins as a practical disguise becomes something more meaningful for Jerry, who finds unexpected comfort and freedom performing as Daphne, especially once the wealthy Osgood Fielding III begins courting her.
The stage musical expands this storyline beyond the film's comedy, using Jerry's growing attachment to life as Daphne to explore questions of gender identity with more openness and sincerity than the original source material.
Jerry's role in Some Like It Hot
Jerry is a lead role that demands both sharp physical comedy and genuine emotional nuance, since the character's disguise evolves into a real question of identity as the show progresses. J. Harrison Ghee originated the role on Broadway, winning the 2023 Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Musical and making history as one of the first openly nonbinary performers to win in that category.
Audiences remember Jerry and Daphne for turning a classic farce device into a genuinely moving arc, giving the show a resonance beyond its comic setup.
Jerry: frequently asked questions
What show is Jerry from?
Jerry is a lead character in Some Like It Hot, which opened on Broadway in 2022.
Is Jerry a lead or supporting role?
Jerry is a lead role, playing a musician who disguises himself as Daphne and discovers a new sense of identity.
Who wrote the music for Some Like It Hot?
Marc Shaiman composed the music, with lyrics by Shaiman and Scott Wittman.
Think you can name today's mystery character in eight guesses?
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Some Like It Hot show guideMusical theatre characters A to Z