La Cage Posts West End Closing Notices, 2 JanDate: 11 November 2009
The West End run of La Cage Aux Folles has posted closing notices at the Playhouse Theatre for 2 January 2010, the end of its current booking period.
The news comes just a few weeks after producers cancelled next year's UK tour due to the “non-availability of suitable star artists” (See News, 23 Oct 2009).
Terry Johnson's revival of Jerry Herman’s 1983 Broadway musical comedy opened at the Menier Chocolate Factory at Christmas 2007, before transferring in October 2008 to the West End’s Playhouse. It has picked up multiple awards, including two Oliviers and two Whatsonstage.com Awards.
Since Olivier award-winner Douglas Hodge stepped out of his stilettos, the role of Albin/Zaza has been tackled by chat show host Graham Norton, Roger Allam and, currently, John Barrowman (See 1st Night Photos, 6 Oct 2009). Barrowman plays opposite Simon Burke as Georges, the role originally played by Philip Quast and subsequently by Denis Lawson.
A press statement said: "The West End’s most glamorous musical, La Cage Aux Folles, will officially close on 2 January 2010 after more than a year in the West End. The show’s original Albin, Douglas Hodge, will bring the show to a close prior to a planned Broadway transfer next year." Hodge, who is joined by Denis Lawson, takes over from 30 November (See News, 2 Oct 2009).
Based on the 1973 French play by Jean Poiret and subsequent 1978 French-Italian screen version, the musical focuses on a gay couple – Georges, the manager of a St Tropez nightclub featuring drag entertainment, and Albin, his star attraction - and the adventures that ensue when Georges' son Jean-Michel brings home his fiancée's ultra-conservative parents to meet them.
La Cage Aux Folles has a book by Harvey Fierstein (Torch Song Trilogy) and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman, whose other classics include Hello Dolly!, Mame and Mack and Mabel. The score features songs including “I Am What I Am”, “The Best of Times”, “Song on the Sand”, “Masculinity” and the title number.
- by Theo Bosanquet
