A Night at the Musicals

This show is what you get when you mix technical excellence, irreverent devotion to the musical genre, humour and an ability to have an audience do just what you want with a gesture or look.

Le Gateau Chocolat has a beautiful, well controlled and perfectly used baritone voice. She plays with conventions- yes, there is the exceptionally long last note, the scat run, the emphasised final ‘t’ to make sure we know she has good diction - but mostly it is a gorgeous instrument used thoughtfully  and skilfully. Just listening would be enough, but there are also humour, costumes and physical theatre generously added.

Jonny Woo has a body and really knows what to do with it. She purrs across the stage, she kicks those legs and does a beautiful Marlene take off with a captive audience member. Her Les Misérables chorus is worthy of legend. It is an exceptional use of face, body and costume.

Together there is a pleasing relationship and plenty of patter to keep, as they said, the ‘tenuous’ link between numbers alive. Some of the blackouts for scene changes were a little long and the scurrying across the dark stage a bit noticeable, but every time when the lights came up it was worth the wait.

Ruth Richter