Jonny Woo’s All-Star Brexit Cabaret

For one glorious night, the creative mind of Jonny was unleashed yet again in theatrical form, but this time at the prestigious London Coliseum. With phenomenal costumes that glistened so much that they would make disco balls blush, a spectacularly funny recollection of the history of Brexit and and an astounding group of vocalists, Jonny Woo’s All Star Brexit Cabaret left nothing to be desired.

Before the show even started I had a good feeling about it, as I walked into the theatre to see stalls to the left and right of the stage filled with Theresa May look-alikes. Eventually the curtains rose to reveal Richard Thomas on the piano, while Sooz Kempner, Adam Perchard and Kevin Davie sang a comical, overly dramatic introduction to the show. Suddenly Jonny Woo took to the stage and instantly I was bedazzled by his glittering EU flag themed jumpsuit; in what appeared to be an even more fabulous version of Strictly Come Dancing.

Giving the audience a few moments to process the majesty of his outfit, an introduction was provided about the show that was promptly followed by a musical number about the day of the referendum, depicting both sides of the debate and how the public reacted to the results. Now something I absolutely loved about the production is how it remained neutral by taking an equal number of jabs at both sides, with remainers being portrayed as exaggerated weed- smoking hipsters and leavers portrayed as right-wing racists; with this, an absurd balance was achieved.

When it comes to the showcasing of politicians the show pulls no punches, with David Cameron (Jonny Woo), Angela Merkel (Diane Chorley), Boris Johnson (Jayde Adams), Nigel Farage (Le Gateau Chocolat) and Theresa May all being put on the comedic chopping block. A particular favourite of mine was Jonny Woo’s take on David Xameron, as he sung about Cameron’s woes along with a trio of backup singers in a political rendition of “The Three Little Pigs”, as well as Le Gateau Chocolat’s performance as Nigel Farage in a magnificent opera style performance.

With all the turmoil that is Brexit deal negotiations, Jonny Woo’s All-Star Brexit Cabaret presents the painful chronology of events in a fantastically comedic style, along with gorgeous costume design and changes (such a key part of the performance that they even had a song for it), something I enjoyed most about the show. Between singing sequences there were also periods of stand-up comedy that featured Jayde Adams’ Boris Johnson impression and Myra Dubois’s Britannia performance, both of which could easily be described as comedy gold. Not to forget added surprises such as the Theresa May choir (the lookalikes I mentioned earlier) bursting onto the stage with flailing arms, with some even daring to imitate the technical challenge that is May’s robot dance.
All in all, the only fault that I could possibly find with Jonny Woo’s All Star Brexit Cabaret is that I wished it were longer, because God knows I think everyone wanted to laugh more about this horrible mess that we’ve found ourselves in.

-4.5 stars