Yesterday myself and my Beez popped
to the Norwich Theatre Royal to see the brand new spanking touring production
of La Cage Aux Folles. I have been so excited to see this for years and so has
me Beez. I have loved the song, ‘I am what I am’ for ages. It is also no secret
that I am a fan of drag so an amazing song plus a group of guys with make-up on
and wearing sparkly dresses, I was bound to be interested in this musical.
There has not been a production in the UK since 2008 which was in the West End
and there has never been a UK tour before (thank you Bill Kenwright). I have
watched the adaptation of the musical, The Birdcage starring Nathan Lane and
Robyn Williams, which is in essence the same story. It was originally based on
the French Jean Poiret play of the same name. The story sees gay couple Georges
and his partner Albin who is a drag star at their nightclub. Their son,
Jean-Michel, meets the love of his life who just happens to be the daughter of
the local homophobic politician – great! When the two families are due to meet
to bless their child’s marriage, well you can imagine how awkward things
become. The 2008 revival in the West End received 7 Olivier nominations,
winning Best Musical Revival and Best Actor in a Musical for Douglas Hodge as
Albin.
This production stars John
Partridge as Albin, Adrian Zmed as Georges and Marti Webb as Jacqueline.
Partridge is a wonderful Albin but an even more fabulous Zaza (his drag act).
Partridge’s camp, London accent was hilarious and I enjoyed most of his singing
(too deep at times). His ad lib during his solo drag interactions with the
audience were classic and he had the whole audience laughing away. Put it this
way Partridge is a better Zaza than he is Billy Flynn. Star of Broadway,
Television and Hollywood, Zmed, plays the role of Georges extremely well; I
like to think of him as a man with too many dilemmas in his life that are simply
just not worth it. Marti Webb (I am so pleased to have seen musical legend Webb
sing on a stage) plays the gay couples sassy restaurant owning friend. The only
problem with Webb is that she is not in the show enough with only very brief
singing parts, but I was so excited to see her sing and she did not disappoint.
Dougie Carter plays the couple’s son, despite being an ignorant character for
the most part he has an extremely warm and powerful singing voice, I would be
tempted to say that for me he had the best voice of the night. My Beez loved
Samson Ajewole as Jacob, the couple’s butler (although he is a maid for the
most part). There are seven guys who play Les Cagelles, Zaza’s drag entourage
who do a grand job. I have to say I felt like Michelle Visage n an episode of
Drag Race, seeing glimpses of Shangela and Alyssa Edwards.
The loveable Harvey Fierstein
(Hairspray, Kinky Boots) writes La Cage book with music and lyrics by the
amazing Jerry Herman (Hello Dolly). Herman’s score has the awesome hit, ‘I am
what I am’ which Partridge makes very emotional at the end of Act 1. The score
also includes catchy songs with intricate lyrics including the title song, We
are what We are (a version of I am), On my arm, Look over there and the Best of
times, with a very beautiful and snazzy finale. These songs do stick in your
head, with gay rights song, I am, being something I often sing in the shower or
while preparing the Sunday roast. This Production directed and choreographed by
Martin Connor and Bill Deamer respectively, La Cage has set and costume design
by Gary McCann. I have to say the costumes for the drag characters are absolutely
awesome, and I would not turn any of them down once this production comes to
its natural finish. They were everything you want, glittery, feathery, wavy,
silky, mesmerising. The set was grand and I particularly liked at points how
the side of the stage, we could not see was made to be like the stage of the
nightclub and we saw backstage on the stage, really effective. Complementing
the costumes how can I leave the wigs out, designed by Richard Mawbey. Blonde,
rouge, brunette but my favourite were definitely the purple versions –
wonderful draggy wonderful.
La Cage Aux Folles is a must see
for anyone that is a fan of drag, female impersonation, but also if you are a
supporter of a modern way of living and supporting the cause to get rid of old
fashioned homophobic views. The musical will make you laugh and it might even
make you cry. It will definitely get you singing (if you know the score) and be
careful not to be caught by Zaza’s solo drag attack. Partridge has really made
this character his own in a great way. The production remains at the Norwich Theatre Royal until Saturday 21st January; seats available for all
the evening performances with matinees Thursday and Saturday. After Norwich you
can catch this production all over the UK, including: Nottingham, Blackpool,
Cardiff, Edinburgh, Leeds, Birmingham, Bristol, York, Salford, Wolverhampton,
Liverpool, Bradford, Sunderland and Brighton with more dates to be announced. Also
coming up at the NTR soon: The witches of Eastwick (Norfolk and Norwich
operatic society), Matthew Bourne’s Red Shoes and Thriller Live. Please get in
touch and let me know about your musical experiences; remember I am what I am,
@AaronBurgess89.
No comments:
Post a Comment