Meg Stalter says bronchitis kept her from Oh, Mary! shows
The Hacks star addressed online chatter after missing performances days after her Broadway debut in the hit comedy.
By Bianca Rossi · Entertainment Editor
2 min read
Meg Stalter says illness, not a Comedy Cellar detour, is why she has been missing from Oh, Mary! performances shortly after making her Broadway debut.
The actor and comedian addressed the absence in an Instagram post, telling fans she has been “very very sick with bronchitis” and adding, “We are hoping not pneumonia!”
Stalter debuted in the Broadway production of Oh, Mary! at the Lyceum Theatre on July 6. According to Deadline, she is scheduled to stay with the show through September 12.
While Stalter has been out, Hannah Solow has performed the role of Mary Todd Lincoln, and Jackie Sanders has gone on as Mary’s Chaperone. Stalter praised both performers on Instagram, calling them “incredible” and “the world’s most talented,” and said they had stepped in to deliver the show for audiences.
Stalter responds to online chatter
Stalter also used the post to push back on a rumor she said had been circulating on Reddit about her whereabouts.
“There’s a whole thread on Reddit I guess about how people think I was at the comedy cellar and I’d just like to go on record saying I was not at the comedy cellar,” Stalter wrote on Instagram. “I’m very sick and have no voice but doing everything I can to be back in the shows this weekend. love you forever stop saying I was at the comedy cellar please.”
The post included several photos of Stalter holding a glass while recovering. In a comment on her own post, she clarified what was in the picture, writing, “Drinking Pedialyte and on a lot of medication in this pic.”
Stalter, an Emmy-nominated performer also known as the singer behind “Prettiest Girl in America,” had just joined one of Broadway’s buzziest comedies when the illness hit.
What is Oh, Mary! about?
Oh, Mary! was written by Cole Escola and directed by Sam Pinkleton. The dark comedy centers on Mary Todd Lincoln in the weeks before President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination.
The show reimagines the former first lady as a hard-drinking would-be cabaret star, giving the historical figure a deliberately absurd stage life. Stalter’s run marks both her debut in the production and her first time on Broadway.
Stalter did not give a firm return date in her Instagram post, but said she was doing everything she could to be back in performances over the weekend.
This story draws on original reporting from Deadline.