Feathers and French farce
Image: Paul Capsis and Michael Cormick in LA CAGE AUX FOLLES. Photo: John McRae
La Cage Aux Folles – the musical – will make a brief but spectacular appearance on stage at the State Theatre this month with two of Australia’s shiniest stars in the lead roles: Paul Capsis and Michael Cormick.
Capsis and Cormick, both highly regarded, come from quite disparate genres. Capsis is a multi-Helpmann Award winning theatre performer and one of this country’s leading exponents of cabaret. Cormick’s luminous career reflects a more classic, traditional style and includes leads in major musicals, large stadium gigs and numerous TV shows.
“The combination has been quite beautiful and so many people have commented on that already – the combination of the two styles really meld well together,” says Cormick, reflecting on the difference.
Cormick plays Georges, the owner of a successful Saint Tropez nightclub, La Cage Aux Folles, that features drag entertainment. His partner, Albin, played by Capsis, is the star performer as a drag queen named Zaza. They have an adult son, Jean-Michel (Georges’ from a misguided early heterosexual relationship) who has fallen in love and wants to bring the young lady home to meet his parents. However, he needs his parents to be conventional and heterosexual because her parents are very conservative.
There’s drama, there’s mayhem, there’s lots of wigs.
“But I like to think of it really, as a love story,” says Cormick. “The love story underneath it is the basis and the heart of the show.”
Despite his long and varied career in musical theatre and TV, Cormick has never actually played a gay character before. This will be a first for him.
“And this is quite a gay show in many ways, which also makes it so much fun.”
Cormick and Capsis have been friends for a long time and enjoy working together. Though this production has a very short season, Cormick says they are both approaching it with “joy and passion.”
“In a way, the stakes are higher because we know it’s only six shows so therefore we have to, for our own sake too, just enjoy every moment of it,” he adds.
While it’s not a production on the scale of many recent shows, this mounting of La Cage Aux Folles certainly won’t disappoint.
“It looks beautiful and it’s very sparkly and shiny, so it’s a very 2020 version yet keeping its classic style of the ‘80s, really…it’s not a huge technical production but still it actually looks a million dollars,” assures Cormick who credits the young but very talented director, Riley Spadaro.
Cormick is impressed with the level of talent involved as well. Zoë Ventoura, known more for TV drama, is incredibly funny as Marie Dindon. Anthony Brandon Wong is an absolute scream as the maid/butler, Jacob. And Lucia Mastrantone is brilliant as Jacqueline.
“I’ve never met Lucia before but she’s a comic genius. That one is really hysterical in the show,” says Cormick.
The choreography is stunning – as are the dancers, and it is just a lot of fun.
“It really is joyous, you know, you leave and you can’t help but smile.”
