Paolo Montalban is on a roll: ‘Cinderella’ on Disney+ and Broadway’s ‘Funny Girl’
Paolo Montalban, seen here with Brandy Norwood, is King Charming in “Descendants: Rise of Red.” ABC/DISNEY+
NEW YORK — Filipino American actor Paolo Montalban is on a roll.
He has been cast as King Charming opposite Brandy Norwood as Cinderella in the Disney+ original movie “Descendants: The Rise of Red.”
He will also be joining the cast of the Broadway revival of “Funny Girl” featuring Glee star Lea Michele in the title role. He will play Florenz Ziegfeld beginning March 28.
Montalban and Norwood are reuniting to reprise their groundbreaking roles from the iconic 1997 television movie of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Cinderella.” They starred alongside Whitney Houston, who played the fairy godmother and was a co-producer of the film. It was the first time these characters had been portrayed by actors of color on national television.
Disney’s music-driven Descendants cinematic universe follows the teenage children of classic Disney villains.
In “Descendants: The Rise of Red,” Cinderella and Charming’s perfectionist daughter Chloe must join forces with her polar opposite Red, the rebellious daughter of the tyrannical Queen of Hearts. The pair has to work together to stop a coup started by the Queen, played by British singer Rita Ora
Four Isle of the Lost tie-in novels have been written by Fil-Am author Melissa de la Cruz.
Responses
Disney+ announced the casting on its Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts, including a behind-the-scenes video clip of the couple.
In Montalban’s Instagram account (@itspaolomontalban), he shared the clip and wrote, “Brandy! My QUEEN!!”
An appreciative user left a comment, “As an Asian American musical theater fan, thank you for all the work you’re doing to break barriers in the entertainment industry!”
Responses to the tweet include “Wow wow wow,” “Ahhhh they’re back!!!! They look good,” and “Yes, im over here sobbing!!!! They look amazing. I can’t wait to watch this.”
Montalban’s other television credits include Kung Lao in “Mortal Kombat: Conquest,” “Madam Secretary,” “The Blacklist,” “Law & Order: SVU.”
Funny Girl
The original 1964 production of “Funny Girl” launched Barbra Streisand to international fame. She then won an Oscar for reprising the role in the 1968 film adaptation.
The musical follows the life of singer and comic Fanny Brice from her humble beginnings in Brooklyn, New York to her rise to fame and fortune onstage in the Ziegfeld Follies and as a radio and screen performer.
Paolo Montalban will also join the cast of “Funny Girl” on Broadway. INSTAGRAM
The musical popularized songs such as “Don’t Rain On My Parade” and “People.”
In Montalban’s Instagram account, he writes, “Hey Mr. Ziegfeld, here I am! I look forward to saying ‘Hello gorgeous’ to all of you at the stage door!”
He also thanked “the Funny Girl estate for the opportunity to represent our diverse theater community by playing this legendary theater impresario.”
Montalban’s other Broadway credits include “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” “Pacific Overtures” and “The King and I.”
He played Prince Charming in a national tour of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Cinderella” in 2000 with Deborah Gibson as Cinderella and Eartha Kitt as the Fairy Godmother.
“Funny Girl” has score by Jule Styne and lyrics by Bob Merrill with a revised book by Tony winner Harvey Fierstein from Isobel Lennart’s original.
