Hull New Theatre – until 5th July 2025
Reviewed by Dawn Bennett
5*****
Chicago The Musical, last night at Hull New Theatre, was an excellent example of how to put on a brilliant musical. Everyone involved was amazing, the acting, singing and the dancing was just wow! The audience were on their feet as soon as the last note was played.
Chicago was based on the book by Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse with the music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb.
Taking our seats there was a chair on stage, a bowler hat balanced on the back of it, under a single spot light, this set the tone for the show. The pared down set (designed by John Lee Beatty) was elegant in its simplicity and really enhanced the performance.
The orchestra, led by musical director Neil MacDonald, was on stage for the full performance and they played the well-known toe tapping tunes brilliantly. I really loved All That Jazz, Razzle Dazzle and Hot Honey Rag
Set in 1920’s Chicago this is the story of Roxie Hart (Janette Manrara) who kills her lover, Fred Casley (Josh Crowther) and ends up in jail which is run by the formidable Mama Morton (Linda John-Pierre). Roxie manages to persuade her husband Amos (Joshua Lloyd) to pay for her lawyer Billy Flynn (Darren Day) and with his help she manages to manipulate her cell mate Velma Kelly (Djalenga Scott), the public and the press, especially reporter Mary Sunshine (Jordan Lee Davies). Roxie manages to manipulate everyone so that her crime and herself are now a newspaper headline grabbing sensation. But does she get away with murder? Only time will tell!
Janette Manrara played an excellent Roxie Hart, her dancing was, as expected, brilliant but her singing was flawless, Joshua Lloyd played the downtrodden husband, Amos, so well and I loved his rendition of Mister Cellophane. Darren Day was another standout performance as the hotshot lawyer, Billy Flynn. Also, a shoutout to the rest of the very talented cast, particularly the ensemble who put 110% into their performances!
Chicago is sassy, sexy and brilliantly performed. There aren’t very many tickets left for this week at the New Theatre (single seats are left but well worth a solo trip), or even a trip away to see it on the rest of the tour. I don’t think you would be disappointed!