High Society arrived at Leeds Grand Theatre last night, bringing with it plenty of glamour, some brilliant laugh-out-loud moments and, of course, the wonderful music of the genius that was Cole Porter.
One of the joys of High Society is just how much of the music you recognise without necessarily realising you know it. Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, Well, Did You Evah!, True Love and Let’s Misbehave are just some of the songs that have long since escaped the confines of the musical and become classics in their own right. Add a huge cast, glamorous costumes, energetic choreography and an impressively large live orchestra, and this is unapologetically traditional musical theatre on a grand scale.
High Society has quite a back story. It began life as Philip Barry’s 1939 stage play The Philadelphia Story, which was adapted into the celebrated 1940 film starring Katharine Hepburn, Cary Grant and James Stewart. It was then given the musical treatment in the 1956 film High Society, starring Grace Kelly, Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra, with music and lyrics by Cole Porter.
The story centres on wealthy socialite Tracy Lord, who is preparing to marry the rather conventional (boring!) George Kittredge when her charming ex-husband, Dexter Haven, reappears. Throw in tabloid reporter Mike Connor, who arrives looking for a scandal but develops feelings for Tracy himself, and the supposedly perfect society wedding rapidly descends into champagne-fuelled chaos.
Leading the company as Tracy Lord is Helen George, best known as Trixie in Call the Midwife and also familiar to many from Strictly Come Dancing. I’ll admit that I can sometimes be wary when a television name is placed at the top of a musical theatre bill, but George is fantastic. She can sing, dance and act, although this particular role gives her acting and comedy skills the greatest chance to shine. Most importantly, she plays an absolutely brilliant drunk.
As Tracy becomes increasingly intoxicated on the night before her wedding, George is completely convincing. You genuinely believe that she is absolutely smashed, which makes her horrified attempts the following morning to work out exactly what she did (and with whom) even funnier. There is something wonderfully controlled about the performance too; playing drunk convincingly without simply becoming ridiculous is harder than it looks, and George gets it just right.
However, for me, the show was completely stolen by the three leading men. Julian Ovenden as Dexter Haven is charming, smooth, charismatic and effortlessly funny. There was something about his relaxed confidence and comic delivery that really reminded me of Ryan Reynolds, which certainly meant I was quite happy to watch him on stage for the evening! He also has a gorgeous, rich baritone voice and the sort of easy stage presence that makes everything look completely natural.
Freddie Fox as Mike Connor is a brilliant contrast. His Mike is sharper, a little slyer and slightly more unpredictable, but every bit as funny. Fox has superb comic timing and, like George, proves himself particularly good at playing drunk. The scenes following the pre-wedding party are some of the funniest of the night, with the characters becoming increasingly less inhibited as the champagne takes effect.
Fox and Ovenden together are particularly wonderful. Their performance of Well, Did You Evah! (one of my all-time favourite Cole Porter songs) is an absolute joy and a fantastic way to open Act Two. There is so much energy, humour and playfulness between them that it almost feels spontaneous, despite obviously being incredibly well rehearsed. It is one of those musical theatre numbers where the performers seem to be enjoying themselves every bit as much as the audience, and that sense of fun is infectious.
Completing my trio of favourites is Nigel Lindsay as Uncle Willie. I loved Lindsay as Barry in Four Lions, where he was absolutely hilarious, and he brings that same gift for comedy to High Society. Uncle Willie is larger than life, wonderfully inappropriate and (of course) yet another exceptionally good drunk. Yep…there is definitely a theme developing here. Lindsay has loads of character and squeezes every possible laugh from Uncle Willie without pushing him so far that he simply becomes a caricature. He also leads one of my favourite musical moments of the evening, Now You Has Jazz, which provides a phenomenal end to Act One.
With the jazz musicians on stage and the ensemble joining them for a huge, energetic dance number, it has something of the same exhilarating feel as All That Jazz from Chicago. The combination of live musicians, dancers, choreography and Cole Porter’s music is irresistible. It is exactly the kind of big musical theatre number I love and sends you into the interval on a real high.
The music throughout is, unsurprisingly, one of the production’s greatest strengths. Under Musical Director Dan McLaughlin, with Stephen Ridley as Musical Supervisor, the large, live, 26 piece orchestra gives Porter’s score the richness and scale it deserves. His upbeat numbers are by far where the production really flies. Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, Well, Did You Evah! and Now You Has Jazz are all standout moments.
Some of the slower romantic numbers do occasionally allow the pace to dip somewhat, and for me they don’t have quite the same magic as Porter’s faster, wittier songs. But they never last long enough to become a real problem. Before long another joke lands, somebody reaches for another glass of champagne and the whole thing takes off again.
Visually, this is an equally polished production. Tom Rogers’ set design is clever and substantial, while the scene changes are so slick that the whole thing moves with an effortless confidence. There are some genuinely impressive pieces for a touring production too, particularly the enormous tree that appears for the garden scenes following the pre-wedding party.
Jon Morrell’s costumes provide all the glamour you could possibly want from High Society, while Anthony Van Laast’s choreography gives the big company numbers real scale and energy. Under Rachel Kavanaugh’s direction, everything feels incredibly well rehearsed and assured. This is a production that has arrived in Leeds following its acclaimed London run at the Barbican, and you can tell. The ensemble is tight, the comedy is beautifully timed, the scene changes are slick and the whole thing has that expensive, old-fashioned theatrical polish that you don’t always get to see in a touring musical.
Is the story frivolous? Absolutely. Is it ridiculous? Frequently. At times it is essentially a champagne-soaked comedy of errors…but that is precisely the point.
Nobody is coming to High Society for gritty social realism. You come for glamour, gorgeous costumes, big dance numbers, wonderful live musicians, great performers and two and a half hours of people making spectacularly poor decisions after drinking far too much champagne.
And it delivers all of that wonderfully.
Productions like this also don’t come around particularly often. This is an old-school musical on a genuinely large scale: a well-known cast, a huge company, lavish scenery and costumes and a full live orchestra. It is an expensive kind of theatre to produce and tour, and that makes having the opportunity to see it live feel increasingly special.
So if traditional, high-quality musical theatre is your thing, catch High Society while you can.
It is glamorous, joyful and completely unashamed of being a little bit silly. Most importantly, it is genuinely funny. I have seen plenty of shows billed as comedies where I haven’t laughed once; this is one that actually had me laughing out loud.
Go, enjoy the music, admire the costumes, embrace the ridiculousness, and have a laugh.
High Society is at Leeds Grand Theatre until Saturday 29 August 2026. Tickets here.
Photography by Pamela Raith.
