Singin’ in the Rain – Opera House, Manchester and Touring

Charlotte Gooch and Adam Cooper in Singin’ in the Rain at the Opera House, Manchester and Touring

Singin’ in the Rain continues at the Opera House, Manchester until 14 May 2022 and tours until 20 August 2022.

Star rating: four stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ✩

The stage incarnation of Singin’ in the Rain is now such a well-established and much-loved entity in its own right that it’s easy to forget that it has only been in existence since 1983 – just a mere 31 years after Gene Kelly splashed up a storm in the iconic celluloid original.

Its success is due in no small part due to Adam Cooper, who has been assaying the lead role of Don Lockwood since 2004 – in a Sadler’s Wells revival that he also choreographed – and is now almost as intrinsically linked to the show as Kelly.

So it’s quite a thrill to find that Cooper is still very much the driving force of this production, which once again began its run at Sadler’s Wells in September last year and is now touring the UK.

The role of silent movie star Don still fits Cooper like a glove. But the real joy of this production is seeing how well-matched and – at times – almost outshone he is by his co-stars. This is especially true of Charlotte Gooch, who brings an old-school Hollywood charm – and a mellifluous yet prepossessing voice – to the role of Kathy. Her rendition of ‘You Are My Lucky Star’ turns a previously not especially standout song into an Act I highlight, sumptuously accompanied by musical director Grant Walsh’s unseen orchestra.

Unusually, the next strongest performance comes from Jenny Gayner as Don’s much-mocked, increasingly vilified co-star Lina Lamont. The role can often be taken to cartoonish extremes but Gaynor gives Lina a believably steely resolve while not skimping on the strangulated vocal gymnastics. Her tuneless rendition of ‘What’s Wrong With Me?’ lifts what is sometimes a throwaway song into something quite touching, while her extraordinary delivery of the line “I caaaan’t stand ’im!” really is one for the ages.

But any production of Singin’ in the Rain stands and falls on the person completing its central trio. Ross McLaren certainly brings the requisite comic physicality as Don’s sidekick Cosmo. The synchronicity of his performance of ‘Fit As a Fiddle’ with Cooper and – joined by Alastair Crosswell as an enjoyably OTT dialect coach – in ‘Moses Supposes’ shows off the metronomic precision of Andrew Wright’s choreography to a tee.

But he seems to struggle with the – admittedly herculean – physical demands of ‘Make ’Em Laugh’, a number which normally brings the house down but is less of a showstopper here.

However, the main event has always been how the iconic, rain-soaked title number is brought to life on stage. As re-created on Simon Higlett’s unobtrusive but impressive set, it is still a marvel of theatrical design, and there is now even more unabashed joy in seeing the cast cutting loose and splashing everyone in sight in the raucously wet finale.

But the other visual set-pieces also really cut through. These range – in terms of scale and subtlety – from the delicate way Don and Kathy’s studio-set duet ‘You Were Meant For Me’ is rendered (complete with fan and stepladder) to the bustling busyness of Act II’s Broadway Ballet. The latter is one of many sections where the talented ensemble get to show off their skills, marshalled with ruthless efficiency by director Jonathan Church, and where Tim Mitchell’s lighting and Higlett’s colourful costumes really make the onstage action pop.

Chris Bartlett