Character guide
Sweet Sue
from Some Like It Hot
Sweet Sue is a supporting character in Some Like It Hot, the 2022 musical comedy based on the classic film, portrayed as the no nonsense leader of an all female band.
- Show
- Some Like It Hot
- Broadway premiere
- 2022
- Role
- Supporting
- Music by
- Marc Shaiman
Sweet Sue: from the film to Broadway
Broadway compared with the 1959 film
Sweet Sue is a much bigger part on Broadway. In the 1959 film, Joan Shawlee plays the bandleader of the all-female band heading south to Miami. In the musical, NaTasha Yvette Williams's Sue opens the show with What Are You Thirsty For?, leads I'm California Bound and Zee Bap, and sings the title song.
The stage Sue is also woven into the plot: she keeps Joe and Jerry's secret, loses her mob investor Spats Colombo, and gains Osgood's backing instead. The band's journey changes too, heading west to San Diego's Hotel del Coronado rather than to Florida.
Who is Sweet Sue?
Sweet Sue leads the all female band that Joe and Jerry join while disguised as Josephine and Daphne, running her ensemble with strict discipline and a clear eyed focus on their success in a music industry stacked against them. Tough but ultimately fair, she is protective of her musicians, including newcomers Sugar Kane and Josephine, even as she keeps a wary eye on anything that might threaten the band's stability.
Her authority as a bandleader gives the show a strong female figure of power within its Prohibition era setting, someone building a career on her own terms in a business dominated by men.
Sweet Sue's role in Some Like It Hot
Sweet Sue is a supporting role that calls for commanding stage presence and comic authority, anchoring several of the show's big band numbers as the group's leader. NaTasha Yvette Williams originated the role on Broadway, bringing a powerhouse voice and sharp comic delivery to the part.
Audiences remember Sweet Sue as the band's forceful, protective center, a character who commands every scene she is in while keeping the show's ensemble numbers running like clockwork.
Sweet Sue: frequently asked questions
What show is Sweet Sue from?
Sweet Sue is a supporting character in Some Like It Hot, which opened on Broadway in 2022.
Is Sweet Sue a lead or supporting role?
Sweet Sue is a supporting role, appearing as the leader of the all female band.
Who wrote the music for Some Like It Hot?
Marc Shaiman composed the music, with lyrics by Shaiman and Scott Wittman.
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Some Like It Hot show guideMusical theatre characters A to Z