Cabaret- Theatre Royal

The quirky charm of Cabaret is unlike that of any other musical.

Set in 1931 Berlin before the Nazis took power it is a world of hedonistic decadence, centre around the Kit Kat club.

It doesn't shy away from the sexual side of the story, with lot's of lacy underwear in your face flesh and an explicit tableaux of bedroom action. But the director doesn't let this overshadow the more serious tensions building under the surface.

Wayne Sleep is marvellously camp and creepy as the Emcee, even verging on disturbing at time with his chalky white face and oily delivery contrasting with the sparkle and youth of the club around him.

Samantha Barks was a delight as gin-soaked performer Sally Bowles who becomes enamoured by American writer Clifford Bradshaw, played by the lovely Henry Luxemburg.

Although theirs is supposed to be the main romance it was in fact the tenderly blossoming relationship between the elderly German landlady Fräulein Schneider and Jewish fruit seller Herr Schultz which captivates. And as the Fraulein Jenny Logan came dangerously close to stealing the show with her wonderful renditions of So What? and What Would You Do?

But then Ms Barks has the best and most famous songs in the show and proved her talent with both- although she was distractingly hunched over during her big number Cabaret. Vocally however she soared, nailing every note and moving smoothly from mournful to ballsy and throwing in plenty of saucy looks and faux innocence for good measure.

This production didn't let itself down until the very end with a vision of the horrors that awaited the Jews. It was too brief to have real impact and so just felt tagged on the end and unnecessary.

But this didn't diminish the raw impact of this accomplished and sexually-charged production.