Julian Ovenden and Helen George in High Society at the Barbican Theatre, London and Touring. Pictures: Pamela Raith
High Society was reviewed at the Barbican Theatre, London where it continues until 11 July 2026. The tour continues until 14 November 2026.
Star rating: four stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ✩
Following on from the immaculately presented heels of Anything Goes and Kiss Me, Kate at the Barbican, comes this similarly polished, fun and effervescent Cole Porter revival.
And while it doesn’t quite hit the same giddy heights of its predecessors, this version of High Society still provides a swell party for audiences to attend.
Surprisingly, it took more than 30 years for the 1956 Grace Kelly/Bing Crosby/Frank Sinatra-starring movie of High Society – itself based on the 1939 play, and later classic movie, The Philadelphia Story – to be adapted into a stage musical, first in the mid-eighties in the UK in a version directed by Richard Eyre and on Broadway in 1998 (the version this Barbican revival is based on).
Anything Goes was conceived for the stage, with an original book co-written by PG Wodehouse and a meticulous structure that propels its ‘boat’-based plot swimmingly along. But while also featuring a murderer’s row of iconic Porter tunes, High Society’s origins as a film are evident in its slightly thinner story and songs that sometimes punctuate the action rather than moving it along.
However, where Rachel Kavanaugh’s production really scores is in delivering on the comic potential of Arthur Kopit’s book, as the wedding of pampered New York socialite Tracy Lord (Helen George) to safe but boring accountant George (David Seadon-Young) is scuppered by the reappearance of her charmingly roguish ex-husband Dexter (Julian Ovenden) and the actions of her scattily dysfunctional super-rich family, lead by Felicity Kendal on impishly good form as Tracy’s lugubriously dotty mother.
And while the early sections are enjoyable enough – with opener ‘High Society’ showcasing an excellent and well-deployed 14-strong ensemble, effectively marshalled by Mamma Mia! choreographer Anthony Van Laast – the production kicks into a higher gear with the arrival of Freddie Fox and Carly Mercedes Dyer as Mike and Liz, two undercover reporters posing as distant family friends. The comic complications work exceedingly well as the assumed identities pile up and farcical confusion reigns – much of this driven by Nigel Lindsay’s irresistibly irascible, gin-soaked Uncle Wille.
Carly Mercedes Dyer and Freddie Fox
The interlopers also bring an outsider’s view, poking gentle fun at the ridiculously over-indulged Lords and their opulent ways. This is demonstrated most entertainingly by Fox and Dyer’s spirited rendition of ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?’, performed in front of an endlessly long table overflowing with lavish wedding gifts and other trinkets, although the satire never extends much more than that.
The laden gift table is just one of set designer Tom Rogers’ impressively realised stage designs, which later include an ingenious poolside, complete with light bouncing off unseen water, and a huge overhanging illuminated tree, under which Act II’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream-like nocturnal, post-party shenanigans take place. Not to mention the Lords’ opulent Long Island mansion, which manages to serve adaptably as a backdrop to both interior and exterior scenes thanks to Howard Hudson’s clever lighting.
Helen George certainly looks the part as Tracy, oozing glamour thanks to Jon Morrell’s gorgeously styled period costumes and Helen Keane’s similarly impeccable hair and make-up. But importantly, she also nail’s the character’s flighty, free-spirited kookiness, especially as the champagne starts to cloud her judgement in the second half. Her interactions with Naomi Pacquette as Tracy’s sparky and inquisitive younger sister Dinah, including their fun Act I comedy number ‘I Love Paris’, are particularly joyful.
George has a good rapport with her male leads, even if the requisite romantic sparks don’t especially fly. But of the leads, the best vocals undoubtedly come from Ovenden who exudes an easy-going, ineffable charm as Dexter. He lends a pleasantly singsong Sinatra-like sensibility to his songs and makes his big Act II number ‘Just One of Those Things’ into a rousing, roof-raising delight, one of many sections where Gareth Valentine’s new arrangements and the bombastic 15-piece orchestra really shine.
A show that already features immortal songs like ‘Let’s Misbehave’ and ‘Well, Did You Evah!’ (entertainingly performed by Ovenden and Fox, impressing in his musical theatre debut), and their delicious lyrical contortions, isn’t exactly lacking in memorable tunes. But this adds extra songs from the Porter repertoire. Ovenden, Lindsay and Seadon-Young’s ‘Be a Clown’ is fun but throwaway – and can’t hold a candle to the physical gymnastics of its later incarnation as ‘Make ’Em Laugh’ from Singin’ in the Rain. Better integrated is ‘I’ve Got You Under My Skin’, delivered powerfully by Dyer in another of the production’s standout performances.
Its inclusion risks tipping the show into Cole Porter jukebox musical territory, but this production has enough high points, performed with enough pure unbridled, exuberant joy, to ensure that a swellegant, elegant time is had by all.
Chris Bartlett
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