Robyn Hurder Takes PEOPLE Backstage atChicagoas She Prepares to Bring 'All That Jazz' to Broadway (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

It’s a role that theTony Award-nominated stage veteran,last seen in the Broadway-bound musicalSmash, has played to critical acclaim. But while many have seen her performance on stage, her life backstage is limited to just a few — until now.

Hurder is currently starring inChicagooppositeVanderpump Rulesstar Ariana Madix, who wraps her run as Roxie Hart on Sept. 1 (see them singing “Nowadays” in a video fromBroadway.comabove). The actress will continue as Velma through Sept. 16.

Jenny Anderson/Getty

Chicago— about two killer women who use their criminal notoriety to find fame in the Vaudeville circuit — originally premiered in 1975, with legendary leading ladiesGwen VerdonandChita Rivera.

The show was a flop, but received a new appreciation when it was revived in 1996, this time withAnn ReinkingandBebe Neuwirth. It went on to win sixTony Awardsincluding best revival, and is Broadway’s longest-running American musical in history.

Read on to hear all about Hurder’s experience in the show:

01of 10

Dressing Room Diaries

Michael Kushner

The energy in a dressing room is very important to me. It needs to have a vibe. Whether it’s your ensemble spot in front of a single 2x2 mirror or a private room, it needs to make you feel a certain way in order to prepare properly for the show.

For me, the No. 1 feeling has always been “cozy.” I want it to feel like I’m at home and I want people to feel like they’re welcome when they walk in.

Now, with the “Velma” dressing room, I call it my sublet. This room at the Ambassador has been a revolving door for over 2 decades. I love the history of all the legends that have been in front of this mirror. It fuels me.

Oh… and throat coat. There’s always a hot cup of throat coat wafting through the room.

02of 10

Laughter and Light

This is why I love shooting with Michael Kushner. He makes every room so comfortable and knows exactly what to say to make me laugh so he can get the perfect shot.

My favorite pictures of myself are the ones of me mid-laugh. Like this one. This is me.

03of 10

Makeup Magic

Makeup for a show is everything. Your face is a canvas and you can’t paint the same picture for every different show, right? I live for a new makeup plot.

I loveChicago’s the most because it’s classic glam. Bold red lip with a dark smokey eye.

It’s been known that I am meticulous about my lips. I don’t know why, I just have always spent the most time on them. An obscene amount of time. The shading from dark to light has to be exactly right to get the perfect ombré effect.

04of 10

Seeing Red

Listen, I am a blonde at heart. I have been blonde in every single Broadway show I’ve done. I knew coming back intoChicago, they were going to assume I was going to go back into a platinum blonde wig again, but I requested otherwise.

One of my biggest influences in my life is Jessica Rabbit. Yup, a cartoon. I watched her “Why Don’t You Do Right” number over and over again as a little girl and wanted to be her so badly. She has had so much influence on how I have (literally) shaped my career.

She was my inspiration behind Velma’s look. Strong, sexy, intimidating, and powerful.

However, since the role is so incredibly active, I needed to have it swept up and out of my face.

I told my story to Barry Ernst, our wig supervisor (pictured here) and our producer Barry Weissler, and they went for it. The red was a hit.

05of 10

Full-Circle Feelings

I have a few similar pictures like this, a profile shot of me looking down, from my earlier years. One, when I was working on math problems in the first grade and then later on, I’m in dance class as a teenager putting on my point shoes.

Even though I’ve aged, the profile is still exactly the same….and the passion for what I want to do when I grow up remains just as strong. I’m very grateful for Michael recognizing this particular moment.

06of 10

A Line in a Legacy

It always hits me when the first black sparkle halter dress goes on. I think about Bebe. I always say to myself before every show, “Honor her. Honor Chita. Honor Mr. Fosse and Kander and Ebb. Honor the work. Honor the legacy.

On my opening night, one of my best friends in the cast, Michael Scirrotto, made me an opening night card (you can peep it in the top left corner) that has Chita Rivera, Bebe Neuwirth, Amra Faye-Wright….and then me. I burst into tears.

I look at that card every night and think to myself, “I can’t believe I did it.”

07of 10

Raising the (Backstage) Bar

A tradition I started back in 2008 was a backstage “bar” named after whatever character I was playing.

ForGreaseit was “Marty Bar.” When I came back intoChicagoin 2017, it was “Mona Bar.” But things really took off with “Bar Nini” when I was originatingMoulin Rouge.

Putting up a big Broadway show and repeating the hard schedule of 8 shows a week can be incredibly grueling, so I wanted to have a moment with all departments of the production to come up to my room, have a little cocktail I made, and just chat, decompress, laugh and socialize with others you don’t always see day to day in the theater.

It’s amazing what a little hour after a show can do for morale. Well, these neon signs started being gifted to me for every dressing room and I guess it’s here to stay. For this room, as you can see, it’s “BarVel.”

08of 10

Girl Power

This is a huge reason why I love this show so much. Two women are leading the rodeo.

The story of Velma and Roxie is fascinating. Their stories begin with one at the top of their game (Velma), the other (Roxie) at the bottom. You then see the role reversal happen with Velma’s decline and Roxie’s rise to stardom.

These two women threaten each other, they fight, they scheme, they’re petty and cold and will do anything to “stay in the papers.” But at the end of the day, when that news cycle is over and a new “trend” has come up, leaving them both in the dark, they put their differences aside and realize they’re stronger and better together.

On this particular night, the incredible Rachel Schur was playing Roxie.

09of 10

With One Last Look

I’m not sure you could get a better “backstage” shot.

This is underneath the “Jury Box”-basically the set that the musicians are playing on. This is our backstage. It’s very intimate to say the least! The only place to warm up before the show are in the “alley ways,” stage right and stage left.

Here you can see our swings Marty Lawson and Jennifer Dunne ready to go.

At this moment, I’m about to turn the corner and get onto the platform where I am then lowered into the “hole.”

10of 10

Down the Hatch

My stomach always flutters when I hear the grinding of the gears and begin the short descent into the hole. The responsibility becomes very real.

Velma begins as the narrator. She’s technically not “Velma” until “Cell Block Tango.”

“All That Jazz” is the invitation to the audience. It’s the hardest number to perform. You need to be inviting but mysterious. You want to be charming but intimidating. Sexy but calm. You need to finish the number with the audience in palm of your and the entire casts hands. They should be excited, nervous, intrigued and ready to go on this two and a half hour journey with you.

That is what’s going on in my brain down there in the box as I’m doing my little warm up in my 3 x 3 square as the “Overture” plays out. Invite them, give ‘em the old razzle dazzle, but most importantly, tell the story… and all the jazz.

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Tickets forChicagoare on sale now atchicagothemusical.com.

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Tickets forChicagoare on sale now atchicagothemusical.com.

source: people.com