Chicago is back in London after a six-year absence - with a bona fide US star front and centre.
Oscar-winner Cuba Gooding Jnr. plays slick lawyer Bill Flynn in Kander and Ebb’s blackly comic tale of murderous molls and media frenzy in 1920s Chicago, which previously ran on the West End from 1997 to 2012.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Musical theatre icon Ruthie Henshall takes on the role of jailhouse matriarch Matron Mama Morton, making her the only actress to play all three of the musical's female leads on the West End.
If this all sounds right up your street, read on to find out how to get tickets:
How long is Cuba Gooding Jnr in the show?
Gooding will be playing Billy Flynn until 30 June. His replacement has not been revealed, but Marti Pellow, John Barrowman and Jerry Springer were among the famous faces who appeared as Flynn during the show’s previous 15-year West End run.
Where can I buy Chicago tickets?
Tickets can be bought online from ATG or over the phone directly from the Phoenix Theatre on 0844 871 7629. There is still some availability for Gooding’s run, and the show is expected to continue until at least October.
What are the critics saying?
Gooding’s performance as Billy Flynn - his first ever musical role - has naturally drawn plenty of attention from critics.
The Hollywood star “makes up for some fairly ordinary singing... with bags of charm”, says the Radio Times.
The Daily Telegraph agrees, saying that Gooding’s acting and dancing talents make up for his unspectacular vocals, and that he “gives a complete performance, showing a touch of the failed vaudevillian who knows his best days are behind him”.
Now more than 40 years old, “the show retains a classy edge and strong fundamentals”, says Time Out - mostly thanks to spirited performances from Soetaert and Gabrielle and a terrific on-stage band.
However, from a production standpoint, the revived 1990s staging is “starting to show its age”.
Indeed, this latest revival is “something of a time capsule”, says Broadway World, from the “once-shocking lingerie-led costuming” to the vintage Fosse choreography - “isolations, jazz hands and pelvic thrusts all present and correct”.
“There’s nothing particularly new or different about this production,” The Upcoming’s Jim Compton-Hall concedes. “But then there isn’t meant to be… Now London once again has a chance to see the beloved show the way it always was.”
-
What to know before turning to AI for financial advicethe explainer It can help you crunch the numbers — but it might also pocket your data
-
Book reviews: 'The Headache: The Science of a Most Confounding Affliction—and a Search for Relief' and 'Tonight in Jungleland: The Making of Born to Run'Feature The search for a headache cure and revisiting Springsteen's 'Born to Run' album on its 50th anniversary
-
Keith McNally' 6 favorite books that have ambitious charactersFeature The London-born restaurateur recommends works by Leo Tolstoy, John le Carré, and more
-
Friendship: 'bromance' comedy starring Paul Rudd and Tim RobinsonThe Week Recommends 'Lampooning and embracing' middle-aged male loneliness, this film is 'enjoyable and funny'
-
The Count of Monte Cristo review: 'indecently spectacular' adaptationThe Week Recommends Dumas's classic 19th-century novel is once again given new life in this 'fast-moving' film
-
Death of England: Closing Time review – 'bold, brash reflection on racism'The Week Recommends The final part of this trilogy deftly explores rising political tensions across the country
-
Sing Sing review: prison drama bursts with 'charm, energy and optimism'The Week Recommends Colman Domingo plays a real-life prisoner in a performance likely to be an Oscars shoo-in
-
Kaos review: comic retelling of Greek mythology starring Jeff GoldblumThe Week Recommends The new series captures audiences as it 'never takes itself too seriously'
-
Blink Twice review: a 'stylish and savage' black comedy thrillerThe Week Recommends Channing Tatum and Naomi Ackie stun in this film on the hedonistic rich directed by Zoë Kravitz
-
Shifters review: 'beautiful' new romantic comedy offers 'bittersweet tenderness'The Week Recommends The 'inventive, emotionally astute writing' leaves audiences gripped throughout
-
How to do F1: British Grand Prix 2025The Week Recommends One of the biggest events of the motorsports calendar is back and better than ever
