REVIEW: Chicago at Mayflower Theatre

Murder, music, dance…  you know, and all that jazz. Let’s take a trip across the pond as Southampton’s Mayflower Theatre has been transported to 1920’s ‘Chicago’. With music from John Kander and Fred Ebb, ‘Chicago’ has been entertaining audiences worldwide for nearly 50 years. The musical screams decadence, and you can tell this from the moment you walk into the auditorium before the show even begins. The music is fabulous, the dancing is classy, it’s hard to describe but ‘Chicago’ feels like a proper proper musical. A Lot of you reading this may be aware of ‘Chicago’ from the 2003 movie adaptation of the same name starring Richard Gere and Renee Zellweger. The story basically follows Roxie Hart, a housewife and nightclub dancer who murders her on-the-side lover after he threatens to walk out on her. Desperate to avoid conviction, she dupes the public, the media and her rival cellmate, Velma Kelly, by hiring Chicago’s slickest criminal lawyer to transform her malicious crime into a barrage of sensational headlines.

Praised as ‘the sexiest musical ever’, ‘Chicago’ literally has a little bit of something for everybody. The theming and overall layout of the show is something that I particularly liked. It doesn’t do the whole set a scene, do the scene, end the scene. It’s almost set up as a concert retelling in a way - something I’d not seen before but something I found very refreshing. If you’ve read any of my reviews before, you will know how much I love a live band/orchestra, so when that live band becomes a part of the cast and is on the stage at all times? I knew we were onto a winner with this one. They were set up on some sort of band stand/amphitheatre and it just added to the decadence and scale of it all. Having said all of this, it is really no wonder that ‘Chicago’ is a multi-award winning show. One you definitely don’t want to miss.

This touring cast of ‘Chicago’ was also phenomenal. The dancing, the energy, the singing - just brilliant. Heading the cast as ‘Roxie Hart’ was the fantastic Faye Brookes. Her voice and the acting that paired with it was beautiful. One thing that I really enjoyed about the show, is that no matter how dark or twisted the story was - the way in which it was scripted and sequenced was really funny. When a musical can make you feel a range of emotions all within the timing of one song or scene, it’s seriously impressive. Again, it’s no wonder that ‘Chicago’ has so many awards to its name. Pairing alongside Faye as ‘Velma Kelly’ was Djalenga Scott. Her performance was inspired. From the moment she first rises onto the stage for ‘All That Jazz’, to the moment she descends off the stage at the end - you are fully invested into her character. The whole of the ensemble were actually really impressive. The dancing was perfectly in unison as there were times when the stage felt like it was organised chaos (in a good way). There was potential for a lot of the dance to go wrong but these guys knew their roles perfectly. Seriously impressive.

Ive already mentioned how great the theming and design for ‘Chicago’ is, but I may even go as far to say that it is one of the most aesthetically pleasing sets that I have seen in a very long time. I LOVED, the fact that the orchestra was on the stage and came a part of the story. I also like how the characters would interact with the band. The ladders that were used on the side of the stage were also a great addition. Simple, yet effective in the way they were used. The way in which some of the cast would use these props showed that they are more than just actors and are almost athletes. The lighting is also something that I thought made this show. The gold trimmed frame around the stage and band was beautiful. And how can we forget about that iconic chair and bowler hat. The lighting for some of the dances in particular was really nice. The lowered light bulbs, or the lowered strip lighting - both added so much to the scene (especially when you take into consideration the shadows). Finally you can’t talk about design without mentioning the raunchy costumes. It was classy with an edge. Fantastic!

I mentioned earlier about how impressive the orchestra were, and even better that we could see them on the stage the whole time as well. Big shoutout to musical director, Neil MacDonald because what a performance from him and his orchestra. In particular the instrumental at the start of act 1, act 2, and at the end of the show was just fantastic. It certainly gave you that old ‘Razzle Dazzle’. The music itself is much more recognisable than I thought. Having not seen ‘Chicago’ before, I knew that it would have some very famous songs in it just because of how big this musical is. But I didn’t realise that I would recognise half as many as I actually did. With such big back catalogue of songs it may be hard to pick a favourite. However, I think I have an underrated favourite. ‘Mister Cellophane’ sung by ‘Amos’ played by Joshua Lloyd was sensational. The singing, the direction, the music, and the acting - all perfect. I don’t know what it was about it in particular but it just really hit all of the right spots. Bravo Joshua!

Overall, ‘Chicago’ the musical certainly holds up to the hype. It’s so impressive to watch and listen to. It’s clear to see how ‘Chicago’ has won the awards it has, and I genuinely wouldn’t be surprised if it wins anymore soon. It’s songbook is in musical theatre royalty and if you’re a musical theatre fan, or just a big musicals fan - you need to see ‘Chicago’ at some point. ‘Chicago’ is at Mayflower Theatre until 23rd November and I think you’d be silly to miss out on this one, especially with this cast.