A high-kicking riot of music and dancing in the shape of another new Bill Kenwright production is up and running in Kent.

And the three stars of La Cage aux Folles have already between them notched up some impressive credits in their time.

Singer and actress Marti Webb joins former EastEnder John Partridge and Grease 2 and 1980s show TJ Hooker star Adrian Zmed.

The award-winning La Cage aux Folles, written by Harvey Fierstein and Jerry Herman, was based on the 1973 French play by Jean Poiret, and follows the story of Georges, the manager of a Saint Tropez nightclub, and his partner, Albin, a drag artist and the club’s star attraction.

The pair have an idyllic existence until Georges’s son Jean-Michel announces his engagement to the daughter of a notorious right-wing politician who is determined to close down the club.

The show was an instant smash when it opened on Broadway in 1983, picking up six Tony awards, including Best Musical, Best Score and Best Book.

This new production, with show-stopping score, features Marti Webb as Jacqueline, a local restaurant owner. The 73-year-old has played leading roles in numerous musicals, including Tell Me On A Sunday, which was written for her by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Don Black.

She has recorded nine solo albums and has had hits including Always There, which was the theme from the 1980s hit BBC series Howard’s Way.

John Partridge, who plays Albin, has had a string of West End theatre credits, including Cats, Starlight Express and Chicago. He played Christian in EastEnders and most recently appeared in Kent in the musical Chicago.

Adrian Zmed, as Georges, starred alongside William Shatner in the TV show T J Hooker and also played Johnny Nogerelli in Grease 2.

He will be making his UK stage debut, although he has been in a number of Broadway musicals.

DETAILS

La Cage Aux Folles is at the Orchard Theatre in Dartford until Saturday, May 13. For tickets from £22, visit orchardtheatre.co.uk or call 01322 220000.

Our review of the show when it was at the Marlowe Theatre, Canterbury earlier this year.