John Kander and Fred Ebb’s iconic musical Chicago has everything one could want in an evening’s entertainment: daring, glitz, rivalry, sass, trumpets, sequins, splits. In fact, if the evening promised only glitz and splits it would be an event well-worth coming to, but it was the cast of tonight’s performance who brought the show to life, high-kicking and sashaying their way around Bob Fosse’s iconic choreography and winning over the audience with passion and quick-witted, cheeky charm.

A treat of this production is its celebrity-spotted cast. Lee Mead’s entrance as hot-shot lawyer Billy Flynn produced an encouraging hum of recognition throughout the auditorium which he lived up to with charisma, grace and a beautifully effortless voice. Sinitta’s casting as Matron ‘Mama’ Morton added a gravitas to a much-loved part and she commanded a wonderful stage presence. Our leading ladies, Djalenga Scott (Velma Kelly) and Faye Brookes (Roxie Hart), put on a fantastic double act. Scott has a depth and richness to her voice which she really leant into for this role, to captivating effect. Scott brought out the more reckless and jaded sides to Velma’s character, as her character’s desperation in the first act wore down to cynicism in the second act. Faye Brookes made the character of Roxie absolutely her own. She particularly shone in numbers which showcased both her dancing and acting together, her exaggerated ‘innocence’ and burgeoning ego making Brookes’s Roxie cheeky, savvy and exquisite, and she was a murderous delight to watch.

The plot of Chicago captures a time when the morals of America were changing. Women could be more than housewives, “No I’m no-one’s wife / and oh I love my life”, and Chicago joyously juxtaposes and celebrates the freedoms as well as the ills that this new hedonism brings - murder, celebrity, jazz. Though the show first came out in the 1970s, this production still dazzles a 2022 audience with its live on-stage band blasting out solos, slick updates to the staging and choreography, and racey costumes. For those re-visiting Chicago the high calibre of this production lends new wonder to old favourites, and for those new to the musical the production is true to the material and offers an irresistible hook of vaudeville as well as knock-out show tunes.

Chicago’s Finale pulls on the reins to slow down the pace right at the end, and the number somehow brilliantly works simultaneously as showstopper and denouement. We are left unsure whether Roxie and Velma’s dreams of fame, showbiz and fulfillment have really come true, or whether this is a last fever dream of attention before they succumb to obscurity. In true director/choreographer Bob Fosse fashion we witness both the thrill and the desperation of humanity, and of showbiz, laid bare. Our two divas sing and dance us through a last hoorah, teasing us with a wink that everything is good, great, swell.