One Night Only: Gotham FC Forward Midge Purce to Star in Chicago on Broadway
JERSEY CITY, N.J. (Apr. 25, 2025) - Midge Purce is no stranger to the spotlight, and now she’s ready to step into a new one: the bright lights of the Broadway stage.
Purce will deliver the opening monologue for Chicago at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 1, as the city’s preeminent top-tier professional women’s soccer club and the long-running, Tony Award-winning show join forces to promote Gotham FC’s upcoming Broadway Night game. The dynamic soccer standout and media personality will perform on the same stage as international supermodel Ashley Graham and Broadway star Sophie Carmen-Jones in the iconic musical.
Following the show at Ambassador Theatre, Purce will participate in a Q&A session.
“It’s an incredible honor to step onto the Broadway stage in Chicago,” said Purce. “I’ve always poured my heart into everything I do, and this is no different. Performing in a show with such legacy and power is something I take seriously—and I couldn’t be more excited to embrace this challenge and celebrate the magic of live performance.”
This perfect New York collaboration kicks off promotions for Broadway Night, the first iteration of a new Gotham FC theme game celebrating the city’s world-renowned theater scene on Friday, May 16, at Sports Illustrated Stadium. The match experience will include a national anthem performance by Honor Blue Savage from Joy, halftime entertainment from Broadway Plus and postgame fireworks, in addition to the always-popular prematch Fan Fest, presented by CarMax, fit with face painting, sign making and live music.
More information on Broadway Night, including tickets, discounted group rates and Fan Fest activities, can be found here.
Fans can save up to 40% off regular ticket prices to the May 1 showing of Chicago with code MIDGE through this link.
Purce, who is an eight-year veteran of the NWSL, joined Gotham FC in 2020. Since her arrival, she has become a club legend, leading the team to its first NWSL championship in 2023 while earning MVP honors in the final. A U.S. Women’s National Team forward, Purce has won two continental trophies and made 30 appearances for the world’s best international squad.
Off the field, Purce is one of the most compelling personalities in sport. She has extended her influence far beyond soccer, from fashion and media to advocacy, and was named to the famed Forbes “30 Under 30” list in 2023. She is a fierce advocate for girls and women in sports, co-founding and serving as executive director of the Black Women’s Players Collective and championing equal pay for the U.S. Women’s National Team. A 2017 graduate of Harvard University, Purce serves on her alma mater’s prestigious Board of Overseers.
A media personality who has provided soccer commentary for CBS, Purce created The Offseason, the popular reality docuseries following the lives of select NWSL players during their off-time between seasons. The first episode drew more than 2.5 million views in its exclusive release on X, formerly known as Twitter.
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ABOUT CHICAGO
With a legendary book by Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse, music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb, Chicago is now the #1 longest-running American musical in Broadway history. Produced by Barry and Fran Weissler, Chicago is the winner of six 1997 Tony Awards, including Best Musical Revival, and the Grammy Award for Best Musical Cast Recording.
Directed by Tony Award winner Walter Bobbie and choreographed by Tony Award winner Ann Reinking, Chicago features set design by Tony Award winner John Lee Beatty, costume design by Tony Award winner William Ivey Long, lighting design by Tony Award winner Ken Billington, sound design by Tony Award winner Scott Lehrer, casting by ARC / Duncan Stewart, CSA, and Executive Producer Alecia Parker.
Set amidst the razzle-dazzle decadence of the 1920s, Chicago is the story of Roxie Hart, a housewife and nightclub dancer who murders her on-the-side lover after he threatens to walk out on her. Desperate to avoid conviction, she dupes the public, the media and her rival cellmate, Velma Kelly, by hiring Chicago’s slickest criminal lawyer to transform her malicious crime into a barrage of sensational headlines, the likes of which might just as easily be ripped from today's tabloids.
ABOUT GOTHAM FC
Representing New Jersey and New York with top global players, Gotham FC is one of 14 teams in the National Women’s Soccer League. In 2023, Gotham FC won the NWSL Championship, clinching the club’s first NWSL title, after previously advancing to its first NWSL final appearance in the 2021 NWSL Challenge Cup Final. Rebranded as Gotham FC in 2021, the club plays its home matches at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, NJ. Founded in 2007, the club won the inaugural Women’s Professional Soccer Championship in 2009 and has been a founding member of the NWSL since the league’s establishment in 2013.
