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Bette Midler Returning To “Hello, Dolly!” On Broadway For Final Weeks

It's so nice to have her back where she belongs.

Hello again!

Bette Midler will return to the role of meddling matchmaker Dolly Gallagher Levi this summer in the Tony Award-winning Broadway revival of Hello, Dolly!, Playbill reports.

Midler, 72, who won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her performance, steps back into the show July 17 for a limited six-week engagement through August 25, when the Jerry Zaks-directed revival is now set to conclude its Broadway run.

She relieves Tony-winning legend Bernadette Peters, who replaced Midler beginning January 20 and will take her final bow July 15 as scheduled.

“I am delighted to return to the scene of one of the greatest experiences of my life, and I know the brilliant Bernadette Peters enjoyed her turn as much as I did," says Midler in a statement. "Dolly Levi is one of the most joyful characters in Broadway history, and Bernadette and I were lucky to to be able to step into her glorious shoes.”

“I am forever grateful to Bette for suggesting I step into the role of Dolly Levi," Peters adds. "She was right. We both agree it is an amazing, joyful journey for us and the audience. And now I will hand the red dress back to my friend, the magnificent Bette Midler.”

Midler's original co-stars, out Tony winners David Hyde Pierce and Gavin Creel, will also return to their roles as Horace Vandergelder and Cornelius Hackl, respectively. “Bette Midler is a crazy woman and I can’t wait to get back on stage with her,” Pierce says.

Besides Midler and Peters, other luminaries who have played Dolly Levi on stage include Carol Channing, Ethel Merman, Pearl Bailey, Phyllis Diller, Betty Grable, Martha Raye, Ginger Rogers, Ethel Rogers, and Mary Martin.

Last month Whoopi Goldberg expressed interest in taking on the iconic part.

A national tour of Hello, Dolly! kicks off October 2 in Cleveland starring Tony winner Betty Buckley.

Hello, Dolly! is playing at the Shubert Theater in New York.

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