Rarely, if ever, does a pre-Broadway musical come out of the gate ready to roll to the Big Apple, but if opening night at Chicago’s Cadillac Palace Theatre was any indication, “Tootsie” is basically right on target. Sure there may be some tweaks along the way, albeit not as drastically as the lead character does to the dreadfully rebooted “Romeo And Juliet” play within the play, but beyond a lyric here or a costume there, the show’s running a lot smoother than most at this stage in its five-week run.

All of this makes for a barrel of laughs in between heartwarming moments of genuine conversations with one another, though no matter how much Michael tries to convince his skeptical roommate that becoming Tootsie is a fantastic idea to revive a sinking career, it’s only a matter of time before the entire charade unravels (and it’s of course at the least opportune moment imaginable).

It also manages to fairly balance staying true to the premise of the 1982 comedy starring Dustin Hoffman and Jessica Lange, while giving the increasingly-dated cultural references a millennial facelift. Gone is the original easy/breezy soundtrack from composer Dave Grusin and yacht rocker Stephen Bishop in favor of a shinier pop shimmer from Tony Award-winner David Yazbek, while references to the digital era, social networking and Amazon Prime abound.

And more importantly, there’s struggling actor Michael Dorsey (Santino Fontana), who disguises himself as actress Dorothy Michaels (better known as simply Tootsie) to get a gig and can still fool everyone with the same red-sequined gown from the VHS and record jackets, but nowadays comes equipped with a heartier helping of women’s empowerment. When not fighting for equal billing and pay or rallying against the stereotypically chauvinistic director Ron (Rag Rogers), he/she’s making fast friends with pansexually considering co-star Julie (Lilli Cooper), blowing off his ex-girlfriend Sandy (Sarah Stiles) or trying to shake the love-crazed reality show dude with the chiseled abs turned talentless ensemble member Max (John Behlmann).

All of this makes for a barrel of laughs in between heartwarming moments of genuine conversations amongst the comical cast, though no matter how much Michael tries to convince his skeptical roommate Jeff (Andy Grotelueschen) that becoming Tootsie is a fantastic idea to revive a sinking career, it’s only a matter of time before the entire charade unravels (and it’s of course at the least opportune moment imaginable). In spite of all the enormous fallout and embarrassment, there’s always at least a little room for forgiveness, many opportunities for multiple characters’ personal growth and enough to keep buzz mounting throughout this entire journey to Broadway.

“Tootsie” continues at the Cadillac Palace Theatre through Oct. 14. For additional details, visit TootsieMusical.com and BroadwayInChicago.com.