I'm still feeling badly for Christina Applegate, what with missing her big Broadway opening on April 21.

However, it is a wonderful opportunity for Charlotte d'Amboise, who is set to finally get the recognition that she's due. I saw her in Damn Yankees (starring Jerry Lewis) in the '90s, and she was FAN. TAS. TIC. She was really a blow-away dancer. I could have watched her over and over again. It was better than Cats...

So, now, she's headlining a show. Since Charlotte is such a dancer, it will probably change the dimension of the show, making it more choreography focused. Should be interesting.

We're getting tickets for late April, and I can't wait to see her onstage again.

According to this article in the Boston Herald, it sounds like things are going well for Charlotte:

"The past week has been a whirlwind," said Charlotte d'Amboise on Friday, hours after getting a standing ovation for her first performance in Sweet Charity at the Colonial.

In a scenario right out of 42nd Street, d'Amboise was on Broadway less than two weeks ago, playing Roxie Hart in the revival of Chicago -- when she was called to Chicago to replace Christina Applegate, who had just broken her foot, in the pre-Broadway tryout of Sweet Charity.

D'Amboise was under contract as Applegate's understudy for the New York run, a position she was to maintain while in Chicago.

Now, for d'Amboise it will be all Charity all the time -- at least through its April 21 Broadway opening.

The Tony-nominated theater veteran is taking it all in stride. "You know, I'm not the least bit stressed out about it," she said. "I have two kids (18 months and 2years) so I'm pretty busy with them. And my husband (Broadway actor Terrence Mann) and I just bought a brownstone in Harlem. So I'm dealing with a brownstone with two kids and two shows. It's a lot, but I'm managing."

Producer Barry Weissler has said Applegate, who got mediocre reviews during Chicago previews, will return. Meanwhile, Broadway Web sites and gossip columns are abuzz with stories she was angered by the decision to let d'Amboise open in New York. Last Friday's New York Post reported the television star believes she can be ready by the Broadway opening, and was "flipped out" by Weissler's comments.

D'Amboise, though, wants to remain above the fray. "I don't read much of the press, so I don't know exactly what they are saying," she said. "And as far as I'm concerned, it's Christina's role."

"And I love Christina. She's just a gem in every way. It's a horrible thing that happened to her, but it happens to dancers all the time. It's your greatest fear as a dancer."

Still, getting the role of Charity Hope Valentine gives d'Amboise, the daughter of choreographer and dancer Jacques d'Amboise, the chance to open a major revival as the lead, and to play a fourth role originated by the legendary Gwen Verdon and staged by Bob Fosse.