"Oh, Mary!" Star Jane Krakowski on 'Terrifying' and 'Thrilling' Experience of Leading Broadway's Hit Play (Exclusive) Nigel SmithOctober 16, 2025 at 5:31 AM 0 Emilio Madrid Jane Krakowski as Mary Todd Lincoln in "Oh, Mary!" Jane Krakowski talks to PEOPLE about taking over the role of Mary Todd Linco...
- - "Oh, Mary!" Star Jane Krakowski on 'Terrifying' and 'Thrilling' Experience of Leading Broadway's Hit Play (Exclusive)
Nigel SmithOctober 16, 2025 at 5:31 AM
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Emilio Madrid
Jane Krakowski as Mary Todd Lincoln in "Oh, Mary!" -
Jane Krakowski talks to PEOPLE about taking over the role of Mary Todd Lincoln in the Broadway smash Oh, Mary!
"I am thrilled to step into the bratty curls of my fellow performers," she says
Krakowski's run in Oh, Mary! goes through Dec. 7 at New York City's Lyceum Theatre
Jane Krakowski was a fan of Oh, Mary! before taking on the role of Mary Todd Lincoln in Cole Escola's Tony-winning sensation.
"I've seen it five times," she tells PEOPLE, noting that she's seen Escola twice in the part.
The 30 Rock and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt star, who turned 57 over the weekend, just began her run in the outrageous comedy, putting her own mark on a role that's been played by a lineup of bold names, including Emmy nominees Tituss Burgess and Betty Gilpin, two-time RuPaul's Drag Race winner Jinkx Monsoon and, of course, the show's creator and original star, Tony-winner Escola.
Krakowski can be seen in Mary's pigtails and hoop skirt through Dec. 7 at the Lyceum Theatre in New York City during her eight-week limited engagement.
Prior to her first Oh, Mary! performance on Tuesday, Oct. 14, PEOPLE caught up with the Tony winner to discuss what she finds in common with Mary, reuniting with her former costar Cheyenne Jackson for the play, and much more.
Emilio Madrid
Jane Krakowski as Mary Todd Lincoln and John-Andrew Morrison as Mary's Husband in "Oh, Mary!"
PEOPLE: Talk about the pressure of creating your own Mary with only two weeks to rehearse.
Krakowski: That's what's very new for me, and terrifying and thrilling at the same time. To take on such a brilliant comedic role in such a small amount of time of rehearsal. I'm hoping because I've seen it so many times that it's infused into me a little bit just as a fan now.
But what an honor it is to be a Mary. I think the way the show has moved into the zeitgeist and popularity of the community, that it is an honor to be a Mary. So I am thrilled to step into the bratty curls of my fellow performers. And I think it is honoring the original, taking in the comedic genius of all that have come before and then living and breathing it for yourself with your own comedic lens.
What are you bringing of yourself to the role?
Oh, that's really interesting. I'm trying to think. I think there's a through line in many of the characters that I've played that also the through line continues through Mary of being a strong, perhaps not fully reasonable woman. [Someone] who lives the highs and the lows to the top of the ceiling∂ƒ to the basement floor. I just made that up now, but I really do think that is maybe a character trait that you've seen before in my work. There's so much room for it in Oh, Mary! Not only room, it's a necessity.
Emilio Madrid
Jenn Harris as Mary's Chaperone and Jane Krakowski as Mary Todd Lincoln in "Oh, Mary!"
What is it like to share this Oh, Mary! connection with your former Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt costar Tituss?
We do so much work together. We are really tied together in our theatrical world and are really good friends. When I heard his announcement, I was giddy with excitement because it just seemed such a perfect match. I thought he was brilliant in it and had such an incredible reign during his two stints of doing the show.
I've reached out for advice, and Tituss is hilarious with his advice. The first thing he said was, "You must do it, and I can't wait to come," which was very lovely of him. Then he said, "Know all the lines before you get there," which was the greatest advice.
Oh, before the first rehearsal?
Before the first rehearsal. Which was excellent advice with only two weeks rehearsal. He was texting me saying, "How's it going?" He was commenting on my portrait. I said to him, I said, "Oh my God, I can't believe I have, what do I have eight days left or something?"
He said, "Well, I'm going to tell you, Jane, from the minute that drum boom duh duh duh boom." He said every night that terrified him and he felt like he had IBS in the moment.
So it's thrilling waiting behind those doors, I'm sure. But it is a big leap. But he likes to taunt me with his sense of humor.
Emilio Madrid
Jane Krakowski as Mary Todd Lincoln in "Oh, Mary!"
What does it mean to be at this stage in your career and taking on big swings like this?
The nerves never go away for me, in the beginning, because I think I care so much. This is my hometown community. The theater world means so much to me. The core audience of Oh, Mary! is integral to me, and I love that community so much, so I feel like almost getting to be in Mary is a show of my support as well. And that's very important to me.
But also there's the thrill of the communication back and forth between you and the audience, and you can only get that in the theater. And the brilliant fever pitch of the fans of Oh, Mary! will be very exciting to have that communication with.
Emilio Madrid
Jane Krakowski as Mary Todd Lincoln and Cheyenne Jackson as Mary's Teacher in "Oh, Mary!"
Cheyenne Jackson, he's another former colleague of yours.
Yes!
What does it mean to be getting a little frisky with him in his production?
It feels like home. Yeah. We've done, again, like Tituss, we have collaborated on at least three or more shows, and I'm not joking about it feeling like home. The minute we started reading the scenes, there's a chemistry, and it just felt like whatever our natural chemistry is and our performance chemistry together, it just was there and alive and really exciting.
You have a birthday coming up on Saturday.
How dare you! [Laughs]
Emilio Madrid
John-Andrew Morrison as Mary's Husband and Jane Krakowski as Mary Todd Lincoln in "Oh, Mary!"
Are birthdays a big deal for you?
I want them to be celebrated. I like the marking of another year, passing another, what do they say, tour around the sun? But yeah, to be honest with you, I'm rehearsing all day on my birthday.
Yeah, I was going to ask.
There's nothing more celebratory than for an actor, I think, to be working on your birthday, as kind of a sign of that we're in good days. So I'm very thrilled to get to rehearse all day and celebrate with my Oh, Mary! cast and crew. And then probably have not too big of a small dinner celebration, because I've got to go back to rehearsal the next day. We're in the thick of it. But yeah, it feels like the start of a good year by having this opening in the same week as my birthday.
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