Chicago | QPAC & Crossroads Live Australia

Lucy Maunder as Roxie Hart. Image: Juliet Taylor

I am known by my friends, family, and avid watchers of my Instagram story to be a devout worshipper of morally dubious, if not outright evil, fictional women. And I am certainly not the only girl in the world who could be accurately described as such. Gone Girl hit theatres in 2014 and the Good For Her genre was catapulted into the centre of cultural discourse. Women like Amy Dunne, Dani from Midsommar (2019), Jennifer Check, Wanda Maximoff, Pearl, Regina Mills, and so many more have done or been party to despicable things and we excuse or even celebrate it, because ‘good for her’. Chicago is the original Good For Her musical, we watch as women give in to the darker side of themselves and quite literally get away with murder – often weaponizing the mechanics of patriarchy in order to do so. 

I arrived to QPAC already loving Chicago, but this love was for the 2002 film (starring icon of my life Catherine Zeta-Jones). This venture was my first time seeing the stage musical and so my plus one was quick to tell me that the musical is not the film, and I should forgive it for not being so. However, I adore Bob Fosse – the legendary original choreographer of Chicago (1975), The Pajama Game (1954), and How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (1961) and Oscar winning director of Cabaret (1972) – his style is electrifying has held my affection since I was a preteen. I have watched the Trumpet Solo from Sing, Sing, Sing performed by more people, more times than I could possibly count. The point is I Love Fosse, and I knew between my love of Mr Fosse and my love of evil women that I was in for a phenomenal night regardless of how the film and musical differ. And by golly was I right. I was so right that I deeply prefer the performance I saw on opening night to the film, and I really love the film.

The curtain rises and the band is onstage – I love. Zoë Ventoura’s Velma Kelly and the ensemble emerge to perform And All That Jazz and everyone is wearing variously tight, mesh, sheer, glittering, leather, suggestive black costumes – I love. Across the board, the vocals are smooth, the choreography is sharp, the acting is smart, and the music is sensational – I love. Everything about this Chicago is sensual, suggestive, alluring. The entire show is shrouded in a cloud of cigar smoke (figuratively speaking) and whispers of something just below the surface – I love. Audiences are titillated by a symphony of music, movement, song, dance, and dialogue performed by a group of excellent artists doing art excellently. So excellently in fact, that the iconic Cell Block Tango gave me physical chills.

Zoë Ventoura as Velma Kelly. Image: Juliet Taylor

Our five leads are a star-studded group and none of them fail to leave me with stars in my eyes. Ventoura’s Velma Kelly is a sharp, cold, calculating former-Vaudeville star who is never not plotting her return to the limelight. Her eyes like daggers and her voice like silk, Ventoura gives us a classic femme fatale but not without some grit. Lucy Maunder‘s Roxie Hart is a fame hungry social climber who will say and do what (or who) ever it takes to get what she wants, and we love her for it and she loves us for loving her. She truly enchants the audience with her delusions of superstardom in a virtuosic performance of Roxie. Both our leading ladies absolutely dominate the stage in their solo numbers and are perfect foils when it comes to their scenes together. Never has blind arrogance and self-absorption been so goddamn glamourous.

Anthony Warlow’s Billy Flynn is suave, silver-tongued, and slipperier than a bloodstained floor. All he cares about is love and luckily for us both, I loved his performance. He also takes lead on my favourite ensemble number (aside from Cell Block Tango) of the night in Razzle-Dazzle. Asabi Goodman’s Matron ‘Mama’ Morton is in charge and is not afraid to let you know. Her performance of When You’re Good to Mama and Class (alongside Ventoura) were my two favourite vocal performances of the night. Peter Rowsthorn (yes, as in Brett from Kath and Kim Peter Rowsthorn)’s Amos Hart is a neglected, ineffectual husband. He gives us a different but nonetheless satisfying flavour of this archetype than what we have seen on the small-screen, and he keeps up with the rest of the cast vocally. His rendition of Mr Cellophane is deeply endearing and while Amos might not get exit music, he left the stage accompanied by raucous cheers and applause from the audience.

Chicago is the best thing I have seen, perhaps ever. Chicago is A Night At The Theatre – I can’t emphasise enough the visceral nature of the experience or the extent of its quality. Let’s just say: I was in such a state of euphoria I completely blacked out, I barely took notes on a thing, it wasn’t until I was collecting my bag after giving a standing ovation that I even knew the show was over. Go and see Chicago, I don’t care who you’ve gotta screw, shoot, or shun to make it happen, just go and see it.

My exit music, please.

Cast L-R: Asabi Goodman, Zoë Ventoura, Anthony Warlow, Lucy Maunder, Peter Rowsthorn. Image: Juliet Taylor.

Chicago play’s at QPAC’s Lyric Theatre until Sunday 4 February.