Cabaret @ Kit Kat Klub Review

It's the most talked about revival of a musical in quite some time (for good and bad reasons) but Cabaret at the Kit Kat Klub (the redesigned and unrecognisable Playhouse Theatre) is now well into what promises to be a long run. 

Very few musicals are iconic in the way Cabaret is. It has a film that truly made a star of Liza Minnelli, and the Sam Mendes production (first seen in the 90s) has been revived multiple times over the years to continuous acclaim. 

So to take on something like this, you have to be ready to do something as distinctive and put your own stamp on it. 

Director Rebecca Frecknall obviously has a very clear vision of how she wanted to interpret the classic, and that'd evident from the moment you enter the theatre. No spoilers but it's worth arriving as early as possible and going for a wander round, as there is so much to take in.

Tom Scutts design gives us visually rich setting of the seedy Berlin nightclub, which is a little at odds with what we know Cabaret to be, but it's so exciting to look at you kind of have no choice but to forgive the overly extravagent nature of it. 

It's a given that you need exceptional performances in a production this anticipated, but thankfully Frecknall has two leads that are well up to the task.

This iteration of Cabaret came from the mind of Eddie Redmayne, who's wanted to professionally play the Emcee for over a decade. In an entirely different version of the Master of Ceremonies than we have seen before, Redmayne's opening image is of a contorted, child-like figure - setting the tone that this show is full of surprises. He sings well, but it's not his voice that shines through: it's the sheer magnitude of his stage presence. It's an immensely physical performance that never ceases to go in unexpected places, unravelling into a truly sinister figure by the end of the show.

As Sally Bowles, Jessie Buckley is the antithesis of the girl we know as played by Minnelli. Buckley is gritty, loud and brash from the off, losing any kind of irresistibility we may have expected. In a way this fights against the rest of the production, as it feels very angry from the off. Her performance is also a little jarring against Omari Douglas as Cliff, who does very much feel like a plot-point in this production, rather than a possible way out for Sally. This is also not helped by the fact that Douglas feels a tad miscast in the role of the plucky American writer who arrives in Berlin on the eve of war.
Buckley does, however, walk away with the entire night with the title number (which is worth the price of admission alone.) Screaming her way through the final chorus at the top of her lungs in a rendition that could easily have blown the roof off, the audience finally sees the penny drop for Sally as she understands the world around her is falling apart.

Liza Sadovy and Elliot Levy are beautifully poignant as the secondary couple, who find themselves caught in a fight for love and survival in the face of overwhelming prejudice, and there's is a scene-stealing turn from West End favourite Anna-Jane Casey as Fräulein Kost AND a Kit-Kat girl (I'd suggest the Tories don't go though as Casey is likely to high kick them in the face.)

It would be remiss of me to talk about this production and not address some of the controversy around it's pricing. 

I went to the first preview and had a good stalls ticket for £75. If I was to try to purchase that seat today, it is now an eye-watering £250. That doesn't include any food or drink or any extras, that's a standard stalls seat. 

Now, I work in theatre. I understand how dynamic pricing works. I get that theatre is a business and that after the last two years theatre needs to make back as much money as possible, AND this production has revamped a whole theatre and that hasn't been cheap. 

My issue is the fact that this is now a production that only rich people can see. The marketing team make a big point of the Lottery (which has six tickets for every show at £25...!) and that tickets are available from £30, but that's literally a handful of tickets, that you need to be able to book 9-12 months in advance. It's just a hugely inaccessible way to work. Trust me, I get that they have A-List stars who need paying, and we are living in uncertain times, but two people wanting to sit in the stalls at Cabaret in February will cost the same a package holiday to Spain for two people - that's unacceptable for a night out. 

Be that as it may, this production is a sensation. It has phenomenal stars (who are with the production till mid March) but it's such a solid production that whoever they put in it next have a great piece to work with (I'd consider the £250 if they can give me Andrew Scott and Billie Piper...)

Frecknall has really worked hard to make a fully immersive experience for the audience and for a lot of people this will be unlike anything they've experienced before - and they won't forget it in a hurry. 

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

November 2021

Kit-Kat Klub, London 

Operation Mincemeat @ Southwark Playhouse Review

 

Southwark Playhouse are currently having a great time with yet another run of Spit Lip's masterpiece -  Operation Mincemeat.

I previously saw this show in September 2021 and was pretty blown away by it if I'm honest. It's back now for a 6 week run until the 19th February (which, like it's previous runs, is virtually sold out) and I already have 2 more trips to the show booked...!

The plot? In a nutshell, avoiding all spoilers, Operation Mincemeat centres on the real life WW2 operation involving the invasion of Sicily. A fake body, a plane crash, and a whole lot of miscommunication. Oh, and James Bond (don't ask!) 

I'll fight anyone who tells me what the cast of Operation Mincemeat are not the hardest working cast in London right now - because they are. David Cumming, Claire-Marie Hall, Natasha Hodgson, Jak Malone & Zoe Roberts are all stars in their own right, each playing multiple different roles and giving each of them a distinctive voice. Men play women, women play men, everyone plays people older and younger than themselves, and within seconds of the character changes you have forgotten and instantly bought in to the next person you meet - and it's fantastic to see. 

It is Malone, however, who walks away with the show with his performance as Hester Leggett, an MI5 operative. She is, in a way, the motherly figure throughout this story, and something of an anchor for Jean Leslie (a young typist who's flare gets her involved in the mission). Malone's delivery of Hester's musica monologue is an emotional sucker punch, in which a one-word name change in the lyric knocks the audience for six and sees a woman recounting her experience of the war before this one, and the sacrifices made to contribute to the victory. 

Southwark Playhouse is a tricky venue to be able to do a lot in set-wise, but designer Helen Coyston has brilliantly put together a central setting that easily changes to so many different locations with the tiniest of changes. Add in Sherry Coenen's atmospheric lighting design, and you've one of the best looking small-scale productions I've probably ever seen.

The comparisons to modern musicals like Six are inevitable, as it has similar beginnings and also looks set to go on to bigger and better things. I'd argue this actually a better show overall though - the full two and a half hour running time enables every character to be fleshed out, and every idea to fully develop. If this is where British musical theatre is heading, then we have nothing to fear: Operation Mincemeat deserves to conquer the world. 

(keep an eye out for the upcoming film starring Colin Firth and Penelope Wilton for a dramatic look at this story in more detail - it'll be well worth a watch.)

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

January 2022

Southwark Playhouse, London

Moulin Rouge @ Piccadilly Theatre Review

It took 17 years from the release of the 2001 Baz Luhrmann film for Moulin Rouge to finally make the logical step to a stage musical, and after many delays due to the pandemic it has finally opened in London.  

In what was undoubtedly an incredibly complicated process to transfer a masterfully theatrical movie to the stage, the big question is obviously: does it live up to the hype? 

And the answer is unfortunately, not really.

It feels like audiences are going to come away with one of two reactions to this production. 

The first is being blown away at the spectacle of it all, and there is absolutely no denying that it is the biggest spectacle in the West End right now. Upon entering the auditorium, it's very easy for the sheer scale of what the audience are presented with to take their breath away. It's incredibly immersive as it doesn't stop at the pros arch and really pulls the audience into the world of the Moulin Rouge. There is an argument that it's all a bit too flash, as its supposedly to be a bit of a seedy nightclub, and it all feels very polished and perfect, but you sort of forgive it this because of the volume of what is knocking your senses. 

Both acts of the show begin with some of the best set pieces I've seen in a show...ever? 'Welcome to the Moulin Rouge' is a full five stars, reeling you into the world and giving you everything that this production has from beat one. Similarly, 'Backstage Romance' at the top of Act 2 is a visual feast for the sense as the tight ensemble are throwing themselves around the stage to the music of Lady Gaga and Britney Spears. 

But the issue is that because of both acts start as good as this show can possibly get, they have nowhere to go but...down.

My main issue with the show as a piece of theatre is that it's just an objectively bad adaptation of a really great movie, in one big way. 

In the film, Moulin Rouge is a story about risking it all for love, putting everything on the line, and a story that is ultimately about life and death. The issue with the stage adaptation is that I didn't believe either of the central characters actually gave a monkeys about each other. A large reason for this is the two leading performances (which I will come onto shortly) but the real crux of the problem is that the heart of the original story has gone. John Logan's book for the musical relies on cheap laughs, and the characters mugging to the audience every time a pop song comes in. There was logic behind the music in the film: there was a nudge and wink to numbers like Like A Virgin but they ultimately had a reason for being there, whereas Logan has created a bizarre musical comedy that relies on the audience shrieking with laughter (and on occasions joining in...!) when the cast sing songs like Shut Up And Dance With Me. 

A lot of the problems with the book could be glossed over if the cast were top notch and able to really bring some heart out if it (along with the sheer spectacle of the production). But the issue is...quite a few of the key cast are just not right for their parts. 

It's always an interesting risk when cast very young actors (often right out of drama school) to lead a brand new musical, and there's plenty of examples where it works (e.g Sam Tutty in Dear Evan Hansen and Jamal Westmam in Hamilton) but I don't think it paid off here, and that's largely just because both Jamie Bogyo and Lisii LaFontaine are just...too young for their roles. LaFontaine does fine with her material and does bring the house down with her performance of 'The Sparkling Diamond' but she lacks the real desperation or indeed life experience needed for the woman who is single handedly holding her family's future in her hands. As the bohemian Christian, Bogyo unfortunately just feels very miscast. He sings well throughout, but the character's loveable nature is missing, which as a result up-ends the entire production. There's also little to no chemistry between the pair (in contrast to Kidman and McGregor in the film) which makes the central plot difficult to invest in when you don't believe that they actually care about each other all that much, and causes big numbers like the 'Elephant Love Medley' and 'Come What May' to not land as they should.

Supporting performances however are largely excellent. Clive Carter is magnificent with his performance as the master of ceremonies Harold Zidler - enticing everyone into his world and keeping just on the right side of endearing - and Simon Bailey plays the Duke a little more panto-baddie than expected but it certainly works. Jason Pennycook is doing great work as Tolouse, but his new storyline with Satine is at odds with his and LaFontaine's respective ages (although this is not his fault)

The ensemble work unbelievably hard in this show, with visually exciting choreography from Sonya Tayeh throughout and a wonderfully diverse (in so many ways) cast who all look incredible in Catherine Zuber's astonishing costumes. 

The critical reviews for this are not going to matter for the majority of people who want to see it - the show is a visual spectacle and the essence of the film is stil in there somewhere, and people will likely have a lovely time. 

If you have any sort of critical eye for theatre though, you will very quickly see past the spectacle and see the issues (and the easy solutions that could make this show a lot better).

November 2021

Piccadilly Theatre, London 

⭐⭐⭐