BY MELISSA RUGGIERI

When Bette Midler and I chatted last spring prior to her concert at Philips Arena , she mentioned that she wouldn't dismiss a return to Broadway even though the eight-shows-a-week schedule was a grind.

Not to mention slogging through the throng at Times Square (which she amusingly called “unholy”) to get to the theater, which she did in 2013 for her one-woman show, “I’ll Eat You Last: A Chat with Sue Mengers.”

But Midler evidently found the right role to lure her back to the stage.

She’ll return to star in the classic musical, “Hello, Dolly!”, playing the title character of Dolly Gallagher Levi.

The show, which debuted on Broadway in 1964 and has staged three previous revivals on Broadway, will be directed by four-time Tony winner Jerry Zaks and produced by Scott Rudin.

“Hello, Dolly!” has a preview opening of March 13, 2017 and an official opening of April 20, 2017.

Follow the AJC Music Scene on Facebook and Twitter.