Show guide
Chicago
Chicago is the razor sharp musical satire that turns a 1920s murder trial into a glittering vaudeville revue, proving that scandal, celebrity, and a good lawyer can make anyone a star.
- Broadway premiere
- 1975
- Music by
- John Kander
- Genre
- Comedy
- Setting
- 1920s
Chicago: quick answers
What is Chicago about?
- Chicago follows Roxie Hart, who murders her lover and lands in jail beside nightclub star Velma Kelly, as both women hire slick lawyer Billy Flynn and turn their trials into a race for fame.
When did Chicago open on Broadway?
- Chicago opened on Broadway on June 3, 1975, at the 46th Street Theatre and played 936 performances, closing in 1977. Its revival opened on November 14, 1996, is still running, and is the longest-running American musical in Broadway history.
What kind of musical is Chicago?
- Chicago is a satirical musical staged as a vaudeville show: Kander and Ebb modeled each number on a classic vaudeville act or performer. It is a dark comedy about corruption in criminal justice and the celebrity of murderers.
Where and when is Chicago set?
- Chicago is set in Chicago during the Jazz Age of the 1920s.
Has Chicago played in London's West End?
- Chicago first played the West End in 1979 at the Cambridge Theatre. The revival opened in London in 1997, won the 1998 Olivier Award for Outstanding Musical, and ran until 2012.
Is there a Chicago movie?
- The musical is based on Maurine Dallas Watkins's 1926 play, filmed in 1927 and as Roxie Hart (1942) with Ginger Rogers. Rob Marshall's 2002 film, with Renee Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Richard Gere, won six Oscars including Best Picture.
The story of Chicago
Set in Chicago during the jazz age, the show follows Roxie Hart, a chorus girl wannabe who shoots her lover and lands in the Cook County Jail. There she meets Velma Kelly, a nightclub star awaiting trial for a similar crime, and both women scramble for the attention of the press and the services of a slick, publicity obsessed defense attorney. Rather than playing out as a straight courtroom drama, the story is staged as a series of vaudeville turns, with each number standing in for a plot beat or a character's private fantasy.
That structure is part of the point. Chicago is a satire about how criminal celebrity gets manufactured, packaged, and sold to a public hungry for spectacle, and it uses the language of old time entertainment to make that argument stick.
The music and the makers
The score comes from composer John Kander, working with longtime collaborator and lyricist Fred Ebb, and it is built almost entirely around the sounds and structures of vaudeville and 1920s jazz. Numbers are styled after specific old school acts and specialties, giving the show a wink and nod quality even as it delivers cutting commentary underneath the glitz.
The songs are catchy, brassy, and built for big, sharp choreography, which has always been central to how the show is experienced in the theater. The bandstand, the bowler hats, and the sultry unison movement are as much a part of the show's identity as any individual tune.
Chicago on Broadway
Chicago has become one of the defining titles of the modern Broadway landscape, admired for its lean, stylish staging and its willingness to needle the audience's own appetite for scandal. Its themes of media manipulation and the cult of celebrity have only grown more resonant with time, which helps explain why the show keeps finding new audiences decade after decade.
Its blend of sardonic humor, sleek dance, and instantly hummable songs makes it a favorite for theatergoers who want style and bite in equal measure, and it remains a staple recommendation for anyone new to musical theater looking for something sharp and fast moving.
Chicago: frequently asked questions
When did Chicago open on Broadway?
The original production opened in 1975, based on material adapted from an earlier play.
Who composed Chicago?
The music is by John Kander, working with lyricist Fred Ebb.
What is Chicago about?
It follows two women awaiting trial for murder in 1920s Chicago as they compete for fame and a sympathetic verdict, told through a vaudeville style staging.
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