Applegate Breaks Foot in 'Sweet Charity'

NEW YORK (AP) _ Christina Applegate, star of the Broadway-bound revival of ``Sweet Charity,'' broke her foot during a performance in Chicago and will be out of the musical through its Boston tryout

Monday, March 14th 2005, 10:04 am

By: News On 6

NEW YORK (AP) _ Christina Applegate, star of the Broadway-bound revival of ``Sweet Charity,'' broke her foot during a performance in Chicago and will be out of the musical through its Boston tryout engagement, which begins Friday.

Applegate is expected to return to the musical by the time it starts preview performances April 4 in New York, John Barlow, a spokesman for the show, said Sunday. The musical is scheduled to open April 21 at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre.

``The entire `Charity' family wishes Christina a speedy recovery and looks forward to welcoming her back to the company when the show begins performances on Broadway,'' producer Barry Weissler said in a statement.

Applegate was injured during the opening moments of Friday's performance at Chicago's Cadillac Palace Theatre, but she continued to play for about 20 minutes before the show was stopped. After a short delay, Applegate's understudy, Dylis Croman, took over the role, and the performance resumed.

Applegate will be replaced for the Boston engagement of the show, March 18-March 27, by her standby, Charlotte d'Amboise, who currently is playing Roxie Hart in the Broadway company of ``Chicago.''

Applegate, best known for her role as the teenage tart on television's ``Married ... With Children,'' will be making her Broadway debut in the musical.

``Sweet Charity'' tells the story of Charity Hope Valentine, a goodhearted taxi dancer who always falls in love with the wrong man. The musical, which has a book by Neil Simon and a score by Cy Coleman and Dorothy Fields, was first done on Broadway in 1966 with Gwen Verdon in the title role. Shirley MacLaine starred in the 1969 film version. Dancer-choreographers Debbie Allen and then Ann Reinking were in the 20th-anniversary Broadway revival in 1986.