Video of the London LA CAGE that I've raved about

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 2/1/09 at 9:26pm

Here's a performance on the Royal Variety Show (I guess?) of Douglas Hodge, Graham Norton and Les Cagelles of the wonderful London production of LA CAGE.

Ignore Graham. Watch Hodge, one of the finest performances I've seen in a long, long time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKSnAqsQPlE

[keithp]

Posted: 2/1/09 at 9:32pm

agree - a brilliant performance especially in the theatre.

[A Fleur De Toi]

Posted: 2/1/09 at 9:34pm

I was really impressed with Hodge when I saw him - and his singing was particularly outstanding.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 2/1/09 at 10:28pm

Hodge is very good, and Norton doesn't seem as bad as you said. I love him so much from his talk show, I may be biased.

But I don't like that the Cagelles all look like ugly drag queens. In first NY production, the point was that they looked good enough to trick the straight men in the audience and in the second NY production, they were pretty stunning.

Here they all seem like they're in British pantomime travesty drag.

[Mamie]

Posted: 2/1/09 at 10:38pm

He was great but those Cagelle's were pathetic when you think of the last Broadway revival. I still wish you could go to a club somewhere and see them. They were the real stars of that production.

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 2/1/09 at 10:54pm

That's the kind of I AM WHAT I AM that every Albin should bring to the show.

Far, far, far better than Beach's rendition.

[theaterkid1015]

Posted: 2/1/09 at 11:53pm

I like the Cagelles looking a little trashier, if you will.

I mean, I guess I feel it has to be one or the other. Either La Cage is a high class place with GREAT girls, or they're barely fooling anyone. I think it's nice to see it done a different way.

That makes no sense, but I know what I'm saying.

[alterego]

Posted: 2/2/09 at 12:06am

I agree with paljoey they do look like trashy drags with ill fitting wigs and poor costumes. I prefer the original approach.

[Taryn]

Posted: 2/2/09 at 12:19am

Out of the twenty-something shows I saw while in London, this was definitely one of my top five. I saw Hodge and he was OUTSTANDING. The whole production was, really. In the program they discuss exploring the trashy aspect of the club, trying to take a look at how this club might have actually existed: as a hole-in-the-wall kind of place. Taking that in mind, their conception of the Cagelles seems absolutely necessary.

[homeimp]

Posted: 2/2/09 at 12:36am

I just saw this in London. Graham Norton was wonderful, as was his co-star. The second act had real sparkle. But why, oh, why did Jerry Herman not write a second verse for The Best Of Times? It couldn't have been that difficult. Hey, I volunteer. It's a great number, especially as staged in this production, but they must sing the same lyrics about 10 times during the course of the song.

[mallardo]

Posted: 2/2/09 at 6:08am

I agree that Hodge was outstanding. He carried the show - and he had to. No one else was in his class, especially Denis Lawson, a very seedy and uninspired Georges. Daniel Davis on Boadway demonstrated just what a good part this is when played by a charismatic actor, but you wouldn't know it from the London production.

[bob8rich]

Posted: 2/2/09 at 6:36am

"I agree that Hodge was outstanding. He carried the show - and he had to. No one else was in his class, especially Denis Lawson, a very seedy and uninspired Georges."

Yes - it's such a shame that Philip Quast was not able to repeat his performance as Georges from the Menier Chocolate Factory (where this West End production originated). Quast was terrific, especially vocally. But I agree that in the West End staging, Douglas Hodge really stood out above everyone.

Updated On: 2/2/09 at 06:36 AM

[ruthiefan_felix]

Posted: 2/2/09 at 8:09am

I reali reali loved La Cage in London! It's not as glam as the Broadway revival but has so much more heart and the choreography are superb! Douglas Hodge blew me away! He was amazing! Can't wait to go to Graham Norton soon though!

[PalJoey]

Posted: 2/2/09 at 8:30am

"The Best of Times" didn't need a 2nd verse during the original production. It was perfect, just the way it was.

The song was an anthem for enjoying every single damn moment of life that we have. The modulations between choruses and the gradual joining in of the rest of the cast and the simple arm-linking staging made the song overwhelmingly emotional.

It was 1983 and people were starting to get sick and die all around us. The words So make this moment last...as for tomorrow, well, who knows? took on a strange combination of desperation and joy that I hope the rest of you never know.

Five years later, many of those beautiful Cagelles were gone. And those handsome Aggies. And those Jets. And those Cats....

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 2/2/09 at 10:39am

I'll be seeing the show in a couple of weeks! The theatre is relatively small, no?

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 2/2/09 at 10:47am

Yeah they Playhouse is not the biggest of theatres

[Scripps2]

Posted: 2/2/09 at 1:31pm

Douglas Hodge is great in that video and is someone who makes very unpredictable career choices. He started out as eye-candy in 1980s soaps, then made a name for himself combining populist roles with serious and off-beat work on TV and in film throughout the 90s; so when I went to see him alongside Ewan, Jane and Jenna in Guys and Dolls I was expecting great things only to find it wasn't just his hat that he was overshadowed by.



So I didn't get too excited about La Cage aux Folles until he and the production got rave reviews; and then I waited for my ******* to get themselves organised before booking tickets only to discover they had conspired and been to see this without me. I was livid - I only found out because I spotted a programme at one of their houses. So now they're all apologetic and promising we go see it with Graham Norton. But I don't want to see Graham Norton, I want to see Douglas Hodge.

Toys out of the cot.

But how many actors who have played Albin/ZaZa would also take on Titus Andronicus:



(or vice versa)

Updated On: 5/3/09 at 01:31 PM

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 2/2/09 at 4:43pm

I really hope a great production of this show surfaces in NYC in upcoming years. I haven't seen a production of it, but I always like what I see.

How was the set design for the London production? Was it what it was in the video?

[LansburyLuPone]

Posted: 2/4/09 at 12:02am

Thanks so much for posting the You Tube link! Is there a cast recording of this London production on the market yet?

[jewishboy]

Posted: 2/4/09 at 12:52am

Is there something I'm missing? From watching that clip, I don't think that Hodge's interpretation of "I am What I am" comes anywhere near George Hearn's.
Updated On: 2/4/09 at 12:52 AM

[ruthiefan_felix]

Posted: 2/4/09 at 4:20am

Geroge Hearn definitely owns I am What I am but Douglas was definitely Zaza! This video doesnt really do justice to how much better the actual production is!

[PalJoey]

Posted: 2/4/09 at 8:03am

Congratulations to the production on its 7 Olivier award nominations.

[Hahabimbi]

Posted: 2/4/09 at 8:21am

I kind of liked our Albin better. don´t have a video to show it though. La Cage is a great musical.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 2/25/09 at 6:04pm

Saw the show Friday night and we LOVED it. While not a singer, Graham Norton's performance was delightful. This smaller production plays to the show's strengths in its book. And it opens the door for a non-singer to shine believably in the role almost like Sally Bowles in Cabaret. It is a sparkling production. I also saw Oliver and Zorro over the weekend (and thoroughly enjoyed both), but my partner and I agree that La Cage was the best. And it was the best production of La Cage I've seen thus far. I was not a fan of the show before, but I am definitely a fan of this revival.

One interesting curiosity about the night we went: loads of drags queens dolled up in the audience. It was almost like attending Rocky Horror. It was quite amusing with the exception of one or two who believed they were the show, rather than the production occurring on stage. One in particular kept squealing loudly at every opportunity, waving to people in the audience, getting up to leave and coming back throughout the performance in her ridiculously noisy beaded frock, and mugging and posing on the steps of the balcony during the interval. She was unbelievably disrespectful and obnoxious.