20 year old social media influencer, Charli D’Amelio, was recently announced to star in the ensemble of the jukebox musical & Juliet. She’ll be playing the “dance heavy” role of Chairman starting October 29th (Theatrely). The Tony-nominated musical is known for its twist on the classic Shakespearean play as well as its talented cast. & Juliet features songs from various music artists like The Backstreet Boys and Britney Spears to name a few. D’Amelio will be joining the cast for a three month contract, but also making her broadway debut in the process.

D’Amelio got her claim to fame on Tiktok, doing various dances to popular songs at the time. While most view her popularity as purely coincidental, she is actually no stranger to the industry. In fact, D’amelio is a professionally trained dancer, and has been dancing since the age of three. She even went on to win the 31st season of Dancing With the Stars in 2022 (Billboard).

With the influencer having 100 million followers on Titkok and starring in a reality TV show on Hulu, you could say she is quite the celebrity. Thus, a possibility for this casting decision. Plenty of productions have fallen guilty to a tactic widely known in the theatre community as “stunt casting”. Many shows on Broadway, as well as off, cast celebrities of various talents to fill in prominent roles to gain the attraction of audiences. Whether these decisions are valid or not are completely up to the ones buying tickets.

Leilah Huttner (12), an aspiring actress herself, expresses her concern, saying that “Stunt casting takes away opportunities for professionally trained actors and actresses.” She adds, “Many performers went to college to prepare them for a future in the industry.”  When companies stunt cast, it prevents those other lesser known artists from having a chance.

While shows like Chicago and Little Shop of Horrors are known for their stunt casting decisions, none have had quite the uproar as Charli D’amelio’s. It feels almost insulting for many, as the Tiktoker is not a musical theatre performer. It is known that theatre is one of the hardest industries to be a part of as you not only have to be a great actor, but also dancer and singer.  Seeing as D’amelio hasn’t had much experience in the acting or vocal area, it leaves viewers to question the decision as a whole. Leilah makes a great point, voicing that “It makes me upset knowing lots of actors are being ignored just so that a show can stay relevant.”

Stunt casting is usually a sign that a show is in need of money. Companies pray the celebrity will reel in audiences, therefore bringing in more money to keep the show up.  When Mean Girls was still on Broadway in 2020, it casted Sabrina Carpenter in the role of Cady Heron. Even though the pop artist only got two shows in before Covid-19 shut it down, her performance was received with great positivity.

We wait with baited breath as Charli D’amelio’s upcoming appearance on the Great White Way is sneaking up, but will it be successful? Only time will tell.