Glee star Darren Criss is to replace Daniel Radcliffe in the leading role of hit Broadway show How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.It is the dream of the Glee characters to make it on Broadway and break out of their small-town lives in Ohio and one cast member has succeeded in real life.
Darren plays the character Blaine Anderson in the hit US show and will hit the stage in January as J Pierrepont Finch.
Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe has been playing the role since the 1961 production opened at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre in New York last March and will finish his stint on January 1st 2012.
The musical tells the story of a window cleaner who climbs up the corporate ladder using a self-help book, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.
It was nominated for a Tony award for best revival and finding a replacement for Radcliffe could have been a mammoth task.
Indeed, director Rob Ashford explained: “We knew finding someone to fill his shoes would be nearly impossible,” he explained.
“When we learned of Darren’s dream of performing on Broadway we knew we had found our Finch, but presumed his Glee schedule would eliminate any chance to work with him.”
However, Glee’s executive producer Ryan Murphy helped the team fit Criss’ stint into both schedules.
Criss and the rest of the Glee cast have spent the summer on the Glee Live tour, taking in the US, UK and Ireland, before returning to start filming the third series.
However, changes are afoot once the series ends. Ryan Murphy revealed recently that Lea Michele, Cory Monteith and Chris Colfer, who play Rachel, Finn and Kurt respectively, will graduate, a move which he says is “more true to life” than having them remain as students for years.