After Bette Midler left Broadway’s Hello, Dolly!, the hope was that the show would host a revolving door of legendary ladies for a few months at a time and play for years – like its initial run on Broadway.  We currently have Bernadette Peters on Broadway, and Betty Buckley will be helming the national tour.  So while theatre folk were wondering who would replace Bernadette when she left, it was announced that person would be…Bette Midler!  She will return to the show on July 17^th through August 25^th, when the show will close – allegedly.  I say that because I don’t believe it will necessarily close.  What if it continues to do good business?  What if someone comes up with an idea that could keep the show going?  What if Dolly Parton decides she wants to play Dolly?  What if Patti LaBelle is interested?  I believe producer Scott Rudin is bringing Bette Midler in for two reasons: 1) as a stalling tactic to see if the show has more life in it and B) To film it with the original cast.  He’s always wanted to record this for posterity, but logistically it couldn’t be done during Bette’s first go-round.  So why not do it now?  Especially since Bette is bringing back original cast members David Hyde Pierce and Gavin Creel.