In Dominic Cooke’s magnificent production Hello dolly! At the London Palladium, Dolly returns from Yonkers to her hometown of New York and visits her favorite restaurant, Harmonia Gardens. The dancing waiters in burgundy tails, each carrying a silver tray as if it were a trophy, go wild with excitement when they hear she’s on her way. Like the musical by Jerry Herman and Michael Stewart, it has its feet on the ground, and this exuberant scene reinforces the show’s exhilarating fantasy that anyone can become someone through sheer force of personality, that a slightly older – or middle-aged – woman can be a dynamo, a fixer, a star. Far from age making a woman invisible, Hello dolly!Adapted from Thornton Wilder’s 1938 comedy, the film is about the mastery of high visibility, and Imelda Staunton plays Dolly to perfection.
Staunton’s star quality – she’s resplendent in an emerald ball gown, descending the restaurant’s appropriately golden staircase like a queen – is down to her miraculous ability to remain real and purposeful, no matter how outlandish the goings-on around her. Her naturalness and charm make her a joy to watch. She gives us a Dolly who is happy to be herself, but whose eyes well up with tears when she consults her beloved late philanthropist husband (a marriage broker, secretly arranging her own second marriage). Dolly’s prey is the grumpy millionaire Horace Vandergelder, amusingly played by Andy Nyman. But Staunton makes sure the intrigue never overwhelms the sentimentality, and by the end of the first half she delivers a stunning – melancholy but determined – rendition of Before the Parade Passes By, about grasping for the happiness she still can.
Rae Smith’s set is sumptuous, with late-19th-century New York scenes, flower-laden wagons and even a steam train. An escalator allows the cast to glide across the stage when appropriate (divine choreography by Bill Deamer), but there are also thrilling moments when Dolly spins Really it becomes a spectacle, and everyone remains as still as statues as she sings. Jenna Russell is a coquettishly poised Irene Molloy, another cheerful widow – a milliner who hates hats but isn’t averse to being taken by a skinny, poor young man (the magnificently melodic Harry Hepple).
The comic triumph of the series has to be the song It Takes a Woman, in which the men gather en masse and energetically sing a lazy anthem about leaving the housework to a woman, unclogging the drains, etc. But the unspoken implication in this production is clear: Dolly has no intention of being one of the song’s elegant women, full of elbow grease. She’s no Cinderella. She’s more likely to arrange her own transportation to the ball after skipping the washing up.
That’s where washing dishes comes into play in Katori Hall’s 2021 Pulitzer Prize-winning comedy Hot Wing King. It’s always satisfying to see a kitchen on stage. Arnold Wesker’s KitchenJohn Osborne Look Back in Anger or the fried eggs at the end of Terence Rattigan’s 2016 National Theatre production deep blue sea. However Hot Wing King signals a new generation of kitchen sink drama. The kitchen has been revamped: the sink is hidden, the buffets are marble, the stove is high-end (designed by Rajha Shakiry). In this cosmetically refreshed space, a team of five gay black men prepares a sauce for the chicken wing (AKA “hot wangs”) competition held annually in Memphis, Tennessee.
This is a funny but sensitive examination of the difficulties of gay masculinity. It raises questions about what it means to be a good father, uncle, lover, son. It takes its own time, running almost three hours, but it allows for acting that enhances the illusion that the action is happening in real time. There is affection, argument, good-natured naughtiness, bursts of dancing and – the highlight – a harmonious relay rendition of Luther Vandross’s Never Too Much.
Head chef Cordell (unemployed, unlike his other half) is genuine, charismatic but unsure of himself. He is played magnificently by Kadiff Kirwan, in a short blue and white chef’s apron (arrogant in every sense). He has left his wife and two sons, and is helplessly in love with the dapper Dwayne (a fine Simon-Anthony Rhoden, who sings dreamily).
There are no spoilers about what happens to the sauce, but the plot thickens with the arrival of Dwayne’s young nephew, Everett (played by Kaireece Denton with a touching mix of innocence and streetwiseness), whose mother has tragically died. Dwayne feels responsible for his nephew, but fails to consult Cordell before offering him a room in their home. There’s some hilarious support from sous chef Isom (Olisa Odele) and some seasoned wisdom from Big Charles (Jason Barnett). Meanwhile, Dwayne’s drug-dealing father, TJ (a terrific performance from Dwayne Walcott), gives us a straight version of struggling masculinity. This is a heartwarming, refreshingly original show, with boiling emotions boiling over, brilliantly portrayed by director Roy Alexander Weise. Stay in the kitchen as long as you can stand the heat.
Given the enthusiastic welcome Fan girls press night, I’m probably in the minority in describing myself as a fan. The hit Australian musical (2019) is now in a British remake from its original director, Paige Rattray. Writer (and lyricist and composer) Yve Blake’s aim is to explore how fandom helps girls find and lose themselves. While the idea is valid, it’s a big ask to expect it to prop up a show full of stuffy pop and screaming from the girls themselves.
Still, it’s a great cast. Thomas Grant is a perfect judge of Harry (assumed to be inspired by Harry Styles), with his deadpan stare, floppy bangs and puppy-dog eyes. His image keeps popping up on pillowcases – the closest fans will ever come to sleeping with him. Jasmine Elcock makes a remarkable and heartfelt debut as Edna, a 14-year-old who tries to make her fantasies come true (be careful what you wish for – bringing your heroine into your schoolgirl bedroom may not go as planned). But in trying to understand the young girls, the series tends to look down on them. I couldn’t help but note that it’s the unreconstructed middle-aged mother (Debbie Kurup) who saves the day, as if Blake has been on her side all along.
Star ratings (out of five)
Hello dolly! ★★★★★
Hot Wing King ★★★★
Fan girls ★★