Pop singer-songwriter Carly Rae Jepsen, known for winning "Canadian Idol" and rising to fame after her hit "Call Me Maybe" went viral, is set to make her Broadway debut starring in "Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella," The New York Times reports.
Jepsen will take over from Tony award nominee Laura Osnes for a 12-week run onstage beginning Feb. 4, as the show's producers announced Sunday. She will join Fran Drescher, set to play the cruel stepmother.
The 28-year-old star began acting in high school, performing in school productions of "The Wiz," "Annie" and "Grease" before beginning to pursue a career creating her own music. After graduation, she attended the Canadian College of Performing Arts.
"It was essentially musical theater training with studies in singing, dancing and acting," Jepsen told the Post by email. "My favorite part of the school year was our trip to New York, where we met Broadway performers and toured the theaters. It's so hopeful and inspiring. I've always been one to believe in the impossible, so I relate to her character completely."
Along with her Broadway debut, which has been given a "makeover" and updated for a new generation by Douglas Carter Beane, according to CBS News, Jepsen plans to release a new album sometime next year, a follow-up to 2012's "Kiss."
