Cabaret: Manchester Opera House

CABARET is certainly not a show for the faint-hearted.

The amount of flesh, suspenders and leather lederhosen on display makes The Rocky Horror Show seem tame in comparison.

It has been several years since I last saw Kander and Ebb's tale of decadence and debauchery during the emergence of Nazi Germany in the early 1930s, but Bill Kenwright's latest revival is undeniably one of the best.

Among a fabulous cast, Will Young is quite simply outstanding as the sinister Emcee, the master of ceremonies at Berlin’s Kit Kat Klub where the majority of the show is set and fully deserving of his standing ovation.

Totally compelling, he held the audience’s attention from the opening Willkommen through to the haunting ending where a naked cast stood under showers awaiting the horrors of a Nazi death camp.

Former How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria finalist Siobhan Dillon also excelled as British singer Sally Bowles and gave a powerful rendition of Maybe Next Time, although without quite the captivating fragility that Liza Minelli brought to Bob Fosse's film version.

It was disappointing to see reduced price tickets for the show being sold on a discount website last week, as this is a production that is certainly worth the full admission price.

Truly wunderbar and one not to miss.