Kiss Me, Kate

From the moment she sashays onto the stage there is no denying that Hannah Waddingham is a star, an all singing, dancing and acting wonder. And what better role for her than Lili Vanessi / Kate. It demands of her voice such extremes, emotion, comedy… and she delivers them with equal part, her voice as true when belting out ‘I Hate Men’ as it is when she barely whispers ‘So In Love’.

Alex Bourne is pretty fine too as Fred Graham / Petruchio with a rich voice and plenty of swash in his buckle. The company are as ever finely tuned and drilled to perfection. Stephen Mear once again delivers superb dance numbers and a ‘Too Darn Hot’ that sizzles with sexual energy. Holly Dale Spencer gives a fine comedic performance too and Mark Heenehan has a luscious voice. Gangsters David Burt and Clive Rowe balance sinister with silly beautifully but it is with them that one of the two faults with the show manifests itself. They simply lose the clarity of the lyrics in their big number. It’s a problem that happens throughout and one has to question whether the band are too loud or that diction has given way to accent.

The second problem is not with this production but with the show, which has a terrible weak ending that I had hoped Trevor Nunn might have managed to resolve. All that said this is a beautifully realised production with moments of pure theatre magic from designer Robert Jones that are worth the price of a ticket alone, once again a must see musical from Chichester Festival Theatre.

Chichester Festival Theatre, 27 June 2012

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