So hold this moment fast

Wednesday was a dreadful, wet, miserable one - some of the heaviest downpours of the summer so far. So it was, with trepidation, that we (Madam Arcati, Baby Steve, Alex and I) - cagoules, brollies and all - made our way to Regent's Park to meet up with John-John, Sally, Hils and Crog to see if that evening's performance of the new (fortieth anniversary) revival production of La Cage Aux Folles at the Open Air Theatre was going to go ahead...

...and lo and behold, the clouds faded away and we were indeed able to take our seats! [Having wiped them down with kitchen roll, of course.]

So over-the-moon.

What a show!! [Unfortunately, as this is merely week #1 of the run, there is no footage of our production, so you'll have to make do with videos from other performances...]

La Cage the musical is, of course, based upon the classic 1970s French film of the same name (which was later remade in English as The Birdcage) and is the product of two of theatre's all-time greats Jerry Herman and Harvey Fierstein. A pair of ageing queens Albin and Georges, who run a drag club on the French Riviera, have their lives turned upside down when "their" son announces his engagement to the daughter of a right-wing politician, and farce follows...

We saw the sumptuous Menier Chocolate Factory production way back in 2007 (and again in its West End transfer in 2008). This new production by the Open Air Theatre's outgoing director Timothy Sheader is every bit as stunning, but in a more down-to-earth fashion - not so much the glitz of the Riviera, more like a club in a British regional seaside town in all its "faded glory".

Albin aka "Zaza" (played to perfection by Carl Mullaney) is heavy-set, has a broad Northern accent, and certainly gives off "Elsie Tanner/Bet Lynch" vibes as he/she throws diva flounces and almost disrupts the nightclub's show for the umpteenth time, then reluctantly gives in and gets ready - with this, just one of the gay anthems in the show [here performed by Australia's Wayne Rogers]:

A Little More Mascara

The uber-talented Cagelles are all a bit - ahem - common under those flouncy, sparkly costumes, and can often be spotted in the "wings" eating chips or smoking a fag. The owner of the quayside cafe regularly frequented by our protagonists, Jacqueline (Debbie Kurup) is a Geordie, and so on.

All this makes for splendid entertainment, of course, amongst the sheer magnificence of the chorography, the glitter and the accomplished performances themselves. As the plot thickens however, and Georges (Billy Carter) reluctantly gives in to the selfish whims of his son Jean-Michel (Ben Culleton) and agrees that in order to hide the truth of their sexuality from the "future in-laws", the apartment - and Albin - need to be cleared out, he reflects on their long relationship with a love song that never fails to make the Madam and I cry [here sung by the original "Georges", Gene Barry]:

Song On the Sand

Oblivious to all these machinations, Zaza and the Cagelles make sure the show (finally) goes on! [Denis Quilley, George Hearn and the original West End cast version.]

La Cage Aux Folles

The joy soon turns to defiance when Albin discovers the truth, however - and that's where this all-time-classic number comes into its own [Carl Mullaney was brilliant, but here's Walter Charles' version]:

I Am What I Am

Now that is how to close the first half of a show!

After the interval, the opening scene has Albin/Zaza playing up brilliantly to type, all "widow's weeds" and funereal veil, bemoaning her lot, as Georges tries to placate her with a compromise proposal - perhaps Albin might make an appearance after all, but as a man? This is one of the funniest scenes in the original film, the remake, and in this production. Trying to butter toast "in a manly fashion", trying to "walk like John Wayne" (with the help of some lesbian "sailors"), trying not to squeal and flap her hands; Albin/Zaza almost manages it, but is uncomfortable. Knowing Albin's humiliation, Georges decides to remind Jean-Michel of a few home truths with another tear-jerker [here sung by Robert E, Wills]:

Look Over There

At the eleventh hour, however, Albin runs off - and "Maman" makes an appearance to greet the nasty bigot Edouard Dindon (played amusingly as a Scot by the estimable John Owen-Jones) and his wife! As they all get along famously, so it's time for a show-stopper... [Denis Quilley and George Hearn again]

The Best Of Times

Of course, once "Maman" gets over-excited, her wig falls off and the whole charade is revealed, it could all go terribly wrong - but for the scheming Jacqueline, who has tipped off the paparazzi that Dindon is lurking around a drag club of the sort he'd pledged to close if he came to office!

So, to the dénouement - "nasty Mr Dindon" is forced to awkwardly don a wig and a frock to mingle with the Cagelles and make his escape, the boy gets the girl (with a reprise of Look Over There, directed at the shamed parents-in-law) and all live happily every after with the rousing finale - and a much-deserved standing ovation.

We laughed, we cried, we utterly, absolutely loved it!

La Cage Aux Folles runs at the Open Air Theatre until 16th September 2023. Worth every penny.

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STOP PRESS:
RIP, Walter Charles.