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THE news that R&B star Usher is joining the cast of "Chicago" in August has given the 10-year-old show a nice lift at the box office.
We're not talking Julia Roberts numbers here, but for a musical that hasn't had much of an advance to boast of this summer, Usher's a big help.
"We weren't doing anything at all for the period he's going into the show, but that shot up immediately," says producer Barry Weissler.
"It's not gigantic yet, but I'm pleasantly encouraged."
Usher will play the silver-tongued lawyer Billy Flynn from Aug. 22 until Oct. 1, with the possibility of a four-week extension.
Daily ticket sales are up 30 percent, with sales some days hitting $100,000.
Weissler expects an even bigger bump as soon as he launches a full-tilt p.r. campaign for his new star.
In the coming weeks, Usher is going to be all over MTV, People magazine, Teen People and Web sites geared to teenage girls, who make up a large part of his fan base.
"We're definitely going after a younger demographic," Weissler says.
Around Broadway, which is often perceived as being out of touch with pop culture, Weissler's wooing of Usher is considered a coup.
"It says Broadway is worth going to," says a rival producer. "It says, 'This is not your grandmother's Broadway.' "
Weissler and his wife, Fran, practically pioneered unorthodox casting on Broadway.
They put Rosie O'Donnell, then a fading stand-up comedian, into "Grease" in 1994, helping to spark her career as a talk-show host and Broadway champion; gave Brooke Shields, now a bona fide Broadway star, her first show (also "Grease); and made country singer Reba McEntire the toast of the theater world in "Annie Get Your Gun."
"We draw from all aspects of entertainment and sports," says Weissler. "From my reading, listening and viewing I make lists, meet with my staff and then add or subtract names depending on what they think.
"Then I make the rounds of Creative Artists, ICM [and] William Morris to see who's available. Sometimes I get lucky, and sometimes it triggers agents and managers to suggest someone else."
A big get was Melanie Griffith, who went into "Chicago" three years ago as Roxie Hart.
She really couldn't sing or dance - to be fair, neither can Roxie - but the critics raved.
"Chicago" did sell-out business while Griffith was in the show.
"I knew she'd deliver something special," says Weissler. "I didn't know what it was going to be, but I knew it would be special.
"We never enter into a relationship with a star that we don't believe can do the part," he continues. "I'd never reach out to Paris Hilton because I don't think she could walk across the stage. But I'd go after Jennifer Lopez to play Roxie. I know she can cut it."
Last year, Weissler had a "done deal" with Britney Spears to take over for Christina Applegate in "Sweet Charity."
In the end, though, Spears wouldn't come to New York without her husband, Kevin Federline, who didn't want to leave Los Angeles.
Weissler's dream team casting remains Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones as Billy Flynn and Roxie Hart.
He went after them around the time of the "Chicago" movie but without success.
"I'd still love to have them," he says.
Don't be surprised if one day he does.
michael.riedel@nypost.com
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