From No-Name Producer To The Queen of Broadway: Fran Weissler

We’re back with Season 2 of Big Shot! In this episode of Big Shot, we're joined by Fran Weissler, a seven-time Tony award-winning producer and one-half of the dynamic duo behind Chicago, the longest-running American musical. Fran's journey epitomizes Jewish chutzpah, marked by bold choices—from leaving her first marriage to making decisive moves in her Broadway career. Today, Fran shares with us stories from her journey, including breaking into Broadway at the age of 50 and producing Othello with a star-studded cast featuring James Earl Jones and Christopher Plummer. We also talk about her successful marriage and business partnership of 55 years, how Fran navigated challenges working with chauvinists and demanding actors, and how she finally started to slow down a little bit at the age of 90. 

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In This Episode We Cover: 

(02:35) Fran’s childhood and life before Broadway

(07:04) Why Fran decided to end her first marriage

(08:59) How Fran met Barry and got started in theater

(15:02) The early days of NAMCO producing plays for Catholic schools

(19:00) Fran’s first Broadway show, Othello, with James Earl Jones

(21:52) How Fran got Christopher Plummer to play Iago

(31:34) What it was like to win a Tony for Othello

(33:33) How firing Peter Coe accelerated Fran’s career as a producer 

(45:30) Fran’s chutzpah

(48:20) How Fran and Barry balance each other out as a team 

(51:14) How Fran handled working with the chauvinist Anthony Quinn 

(1:00:15) A compromise made with Kathleen Turner

(1:03:26) The Queen of Broadway: Fran’s identity separate from Barry

(1:05:28) Fran and Barry’s rare, beautiful marriage

(1:09:32) How Fran and Barry revived Chicago and made the longest-running American show

(1:19:11) Fran’s advice for aspiring producers

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Referenced: 

NAMCO: https://www.namcousa.com/

Othello at the Winter Garden Theater (1982): https://playbill.com/productions/othellobroadway-winter-garden-theatre-1982

James Earl Jones: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000469/

Christopher Plummer: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001626/

Lucy Kroll: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucy_Kroll

Stratford Festival: https://www.stratfordfestival.ca/

Lou Pitt: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1018725/

Zoe Caldwell: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0129807/

Robert Whitehead: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0925723/

Medea 1982 playbill: https://playbill.com/production/medea-cort-theatre-vault-0000003496

Chicago: https://chicagothemusical.com/

Phantom of the Opera: https://us.thephantomoftheopera.com/

When Kathleen Turner Brought Maggie the Cat Back to Broadway: https://playbill.com/article/when-kathleen-turner-brought-maggie-the-cat-back-to-broadway

Zorba the Greek 1983 playbill with Anthony Quinn: https://playbill.com/production/zorba-broadway-theatre-vault-0000012262