A night of Singin’ In The Rain

The hit musical Singin’ in the Rain hit the stage with a flourish of umbrellas and a whole lot of rain at Her Majesty’s Theatre in Melbourne on Friday night. Having been a fan of the Classical Hollywood film for many years now, I had high expectations for the stage show.

The set was really well designed and helped transport us back to the early Hollywood years. I did wonder why the front few rows of the theatre were given rain ponchos, and all was revealed for the big Singin’ In The Rain number. It rained – a lot! – 12,000 litres of water to be precise! This was not only really impressive, (I’ve never seen it rain in a stage show before and I can only think what an amazing feat it was to do this, considering the amount of electrics there are on a stage set) but it was also one of the most hilarious moments I’ve seen in a long time – and not because of the cast but because of the audience. Watching them try to get into the ponchos had me almost rolling in the aisles. Heads and limbs were getting stuck in them in an attempt to avoid the rain. I must point out it doesn’t actually rain on the audience, but there is a lot of tapping and water kicking from the cast on stage. So if you have front row seats wear your waterproof mascara!

The stand out performance on the night for me was Jack Chambers who played Cosmo Brown. Not only were his singing and dancing excellent, but also his comedy timing was on point and had me laughing out loud. His character was loveable and funny and had me wishing to see more of him on stage. Gretel Scarlett who plays Kathy Selden was also great and had a fantastic voice and was a great choice for the lead female. I have to admit I was a bit disappointed with Adam Garcia’s performance though. For me, he just lacked stage presence. His dancing was great but his singing just seemed a bit lacklustre in comparison to his fellow actors. Being a big Coyote Ugly fan from way back, I was a bit disappointed that he wasn’t as strong as Gretel and Jack. I did really enjoy the Singin’ In The Rain number though – although I think it was more to do with the rain than Adam.

The final number of the night was fantastic though – the cast all singing and dancing in the rain – the audience desperately trying to put their ponchos back on as they thought there would be no more rain.

…And if someone knows where I can acquire one of those silver umbrellas with the hot pink or blue insides from then let me know – seriously – I WANT ONE!

Brought to you by Nuffnang and Singin’ In The Rain. Photos from Singin’ In The Rain. #SINGINAU