The Barbican Theatre is hosting a swellegant, elegant party this summer with its production of High Society, a musical that exudes joy and sophistication. The lyrics of Cole Porter's classic song Well Did You Evah? perfectly capture the spirit of this year's big summer musical, which follows a line of giddy, fizzy, and sassy hits for London theatre.
The bar was set high with the 2021 revival of Anything Goes starring Sutton Foster, but Rachel Kavanaugh's production of High Society packs its own pleasures, led by a sparkling Helen George. The musical first appeared on Broadway in 1998, based on the 1956 film inspired by the 1939 play The Philadelphia Story.
Helen George plays Tracy Lord, a Long Island socialite originally portrayed by Grace Kelly. George combines the blonde bombshell style of Marilyn Monroe with the vocal wattage of Shirley Bassey. She is joined by Julian Ovenden and Freddie Fox, who step into the roles played by Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra on screen, respectively. Felicity Kendal plays Mother Lord, alongside Naomi Pacquette as Tracy's sister Dinah.
Ovenden portrays Dexter Haven, Tracy's silver-fox ex-husband, who arrives on the eve of her wedding to accountant George (David Seadon-Young). Fox, making his musical theatre debut, plays tabloid journalist Mike Connor, with Carly Mercedes Dyer as his photographer Liz Imrie, as they sneak into what is expected to be the society event of the year.
Felicity Kendal, who made her own musical theatre debut on this stage in Anything Goes, plays Tracy's acerbic mother. Of her daughter's nuptials, she quips: 'We all make mistakes, but this one's making her happy.' As for the wedding arrangements, she assures Tracy that 'Uncle Willie has got it all in hand'—that would be Nigel Lindsay, whose frisky old soak delivers plenty of zingers.
The production opens with Tracy and company in colourful 1950s frocks, performing a swirling rendition of the title number on Tom Roger's sun-drenched terrace set. Ovenden's brooding Dexter slows things down with a smoochy song for Tracy (You Do Something To Me), before Fox and Dyer liven things up with Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. There is suavity in Tracy's I Love Paris and Uncle Willie's That's Jazz. But what truly fires up the stage in Anthony Van Laast's choreography is the spinning taffeta kaleidoscope in Let's Misbehave.
A slight issue with the story is that in the first half, Tracy and Dexter are forced to rein in their emotions. She is drawing a line under her wild past by settling down with the gormless George, while he is giving up the booze he believes led to their breakup. This means we see them at only 50 per cent of their potential. That changes when Tracy hits the bottle and goes skinny-dipping hours before her wedding. Thanks to her childhood training with the Birmingham Royal Ballet and her Strictly Come Dancing stint, George is a nimble-toed nymph.
Ovenden croons with a mellifluous tenor, dressed like a pin-up from a mail order catalogue for over-50s (though someone needs to pop some weights into his leather grip, which keeps rolling around the stage). As Dexter's love rival Mike, the floppy-haired Fox has a fine pair of lungs and is even an upgrade on the film's Sinatra. Dyer's brassy yet soulful rendition of I've Got You Under My Skin is a highlight of the evening.
Between cracking jokes, Kendal, 79, gets to shake a leg and croak a note with Seth Lord (Malcolm Sinclair) in You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To. Spare a thought for Seadon-Young's George, forced to churn out lame gags before being cut loose by Tracy, though he wins a sympathetic sigh from the audience.
Next year, the Barbican will host Jonathan Bailey and Ariana Grande in Stephen Sondheim's Sunday In The Park With George. The summer hits continue!
High Society runs until July 11.
