Ever since I heard that Philip Quast and Roger Allam would be playing Georges and Albin in La Cage Aux Folles, I have allowed myself to entertain the occasional daydream. Wouldn't it be terrific if they had a battle over who was the best Javert? A Javert-off, if you will. They could sing Stars in duelling voices at the encore every night and then The Audience could vote - like in Ready Steady Cook.
I put that little delusion aside tonight to pop along to the press night at The Playhouse. Allam's acting was beautiful and touching, and despite a little mix-up with timing and tuning during I Am What I Am, his dramatic storm-out at the end of the first act (I shan't spoil it for you in case you're planning to go) was jaw-dropping.
And Quast! What a man. I've always loved his voice but I have never seen him in comedy before, and his deft comic touch filled every scene with effervescence.
The Cagelles were stunning as usual (with one demonstrating impressively nifty footballing skills when some insane audience member threw a beachball back onto the stage during one of the opening dance routines).
The whole cast were met with a standing ovation at the end - yes, even from the members of the press and the assorted celebrities in the crowd, pulled into and subsumed by the magically seedy side of the Riviera.
