Review: Cabaret at The Savoy, London

Rufus Sewell’s revival of his 2006 production seems less dangerous than it did originally and Michelle Ryan’s Sally (though she sings well enough and has an engaging stage presence) has a wholesomeness which frequently put me more in mind of Mary Poppins than a good time girl who turns to drugs.

More affecting are Linal Haft’s dignified elderly Jewish fruiterer and Sian Phillips’ ageing landlady, blossoming in the short-lived belief that she’s finally found happiness - until the politics of the period place her in an impossible situation.

Javier de Frutos’s raunchily explicit choreography becomes increasingly athletic, the dancers bodies more disposable, as Hitler’s power waxes.

And Young, delivering the chilling Tomorrow Belongs to Me with side-parted hair and a puppeteer’s power, proves that he’s more than capable of taking a leading role in a musical.

 
Savoy, The Strand, WC2R 0ET
Tube | Charing Cross tube
Until January 19th
£35 - £65 (premium seats £85)
atgtickets.com/shows/cabaret/savoy-theatre