Melania Trump Parody Stars Laura Benanti As The First Lady Singing ‘Beauty & The Beast’ Tune On ‘Late Show’

Broadway actress Laura Benanti starred in a Melania Trump parody, her final for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, where she sang a message of love to her New York City home in the tune of a song called “Belle” from the musical Beauty and the Beast. The actress has performed on the program as the outgoing First Lady throughout the Trump administration’s four years. As Donald Trump exits the White House on January 20, the parody dug deep into Mrs. Trump’s plans for her life beyond Washington and how New Yorkers really feel about her family.

Benanti dressed as Melania in a white dress with a blue overcoat atop it, similar to the one Mrs. Trump wore at her husband’s 2017 inauguration, with her hair formed into perfect waves. She danced around Times Square in New York City for the performance.

In character as Melania, the performer said she had served in the White House, but all good things must come to an end. The actress claimed that the tragic events of the last couple of weeks along with those from the years before had made Mrs. Trump realize she had to think long and hard about what she should do next.

She looked off-camera, and as the first lady said that she was ditching that loser and moving back to New York.

Benanti teased her appearance in a Twitter post seen here, where she posed with Elmo in front of the TKTS booth in Times Square.

As the Broadway superstar walked down the street, she claimed it felt so good to be in NYC, “the be-bestest city on earth. The huge apple, the city that never sleeps with the porn star that lies to you about it. Being here makes me feel… which is something I don’t normally do.”

She broke into song as she encountered Elmo, a pizza delivery guy, construction worker, and sketch artist. These characters shared their negative feelings about her clan to her face, which she responded to by saying they were colorful characters with “local expressions.”

At the close of the parody, when Melania realized that New York no longer wanted her as one of their residents, she sang, “Will I have to move back with my husband, who I loathe?”

As she walked out of the crossroads of the world, Benanti said she would “forget this place, the restaurants are all closed anyway.”

Late-Show viewers found the bit to be hilarious.

“That’s the first time I have been impressed with Melania in four years, peace out,” wrote one follower.

“What a way to end the #Benania run! Great musical production!” claimed a second fan.

“Laura is unbelievable, what a voice!” penned a third Instagram user.