“The Great Gatsby” on Broadway has found its next Gatsby and Daisy — and two former Disney Channel stars are stepping into the roles.
Ryan McCartan will be returning to the role of Jay Gatsby starting on July 27. China Anne McClain will be joining him, making her Broadway debut as Daisy Buchanan on August 3.
The current Gatsby and Daisy, husband and wife duo Reeve Carney and Eva Noblezada, will play their final performances on July 26.
In the interim week before McClain steps into the role, Senzel Ahmady from the show’s national tour will make her Broadway debut as Daisy.
Set in the Roaring ’20s, the musical follows eccentric millionaire Jay Gatsby, who will stop at nothing in his pursuit of Daisy Buchanan, a wealthy young woman he met in his youth — and never stopped loving.
From Disney to Gatsby
Both McCartan and McClain gained prominence in their career through their Disney Channel roles.
McCartan did get his start in theater, winning Best Performance by an Actor at the Jimmy Awards for his role as the Phantom in “The Phantom of the Opera.” The award is given out by The Broadway League to the top performers in high school musical productions. He went on to have a role in the musical “Heathers,” during the show’s run in Los Angeles and Off-Broadway.
In the July 2013, he made his first appearance as Diggy in the Disney Channel sitcom “Liv and Maddie.” He continued to appear in the show until its finale in 2017.
A year later, in September 2018, he made his Broadway debut as Fireyo in “Wicked.”
Now, McCartan is returning to “The Great Gatsby.” He was the first replacement to step into the role of Gatsby after Jeremy Jordan, who originated the role, departed.
Debuting as Daisy
McClain’s acting career began when she was seven years old. She made her Disney Channel debut on an episode of “Hannah Montana” in 2009. She later appeared in “Jonas” and “Wizards of Waverly Place.”
In 2011, she was given the lead role in a new Disney sitcom “A.N.T. Farm,” playing musical child prodigy Chyna Parks. During that time, she also appeared on “So Random!” and “PrankStars.” She also started growing her discography, recording songs for the “A.N.T. Farm soundtrack. A single from the soundtrack, “Calling All the Monsters,” has over 73 million streams on Spotify to date.
After “A.N.T. Farm” concluded in 2014, McClain went on to star in the Disney Channel Original Movie “How to Build a Better Boy.” She also had a short role in “K.C. Undercover” in 2017.
That same year, she joined Kenny Ortega’s “Descendants” movie series as Uma, the daughter of Ursula. She appears in the role in “Descendants 2,” “Descendants 3” and “Descendants: The Rise of Red.”
Now, she’s making her Broadway debut. McClain shared the news on Instagram, saying, “Broadway, here I come!”
Roaring into “The Great Gatsby”
McCartan and McClain will be joining a stellar cast when they appear in “The Great Gatsby.”
The current cast includes Corbin Bleu as Nick Carraway (who is another Disney Channel alum), John Behlmann as Tom Buchanan, Linedy Genao as Myrtle Wilson, Samantha Pauly as Jordan Baker, Charlie Pollock as George Wilson and Matthew Saldívar as Meyer Wolfsheim.
The ensemble features Raymond Baynard, Alexis Hasbrouck, Curtis Holland, Nathaniel Hunt, Traci Elaine Lee, Alicia Lundgren, Dariana Mullen, Chase Peacock, Dan Rosales, Dave Schoonover, Tess Soltau, Kyla Stone, Preston Taylor, Damani Van Rensalier and Matt Wiercinski.
Kurt Csolak, Haley Fish, Morgan Harrison, Justin Keats, Drew Lake, Brandon J. Large, Emily Ann Nestor, Alex Prakken and Elena Ricardo round out the cast as swings.
