Repeat Viewing: La Cage or Avenue Q?

I went to see La Cage Aux Folles last Monday.

I was very excited to see Douglas Hodge and Denis Lawson reunited and was all set to convey my thoughts on the production immediately after the curtain. And then @FeignedMischief quite rightly tweeted, “How many times have you seen that now?”, bringing me back down to earth with a very vociferous bump. Albeit one covered in glitter.

This was because I’ve seen the production of La Cage once every six weeks or so since it transferred to the West End. And yet I’m never bored with it. I laugh in the same places; I look forward to the same songs; I love seeing how the dynamic changes with the different lead pairings and from night to night. More importantly for the sentimental wretch that I am, I cry in the same place and find myself caring and empathising with our heroes, willing them to triumph, with fingers crossed for the triumph of true love – romantic, paternal and maternal.

I’ve seen pretty much everything in the West End at least once. But it’s not everything that I’ll watch again and again. So what other productions have I seen multiple times in the past 18 months?

Avenue Q. I first saw it in early 2007 and liked it very much. But what’s kept me going back? One man, and one man only – Daniel Boys. Yes, I thought Jon Robyns was great, and I’ve seen a couple of understudies in the role of Princeton/Rod, but I genuinely believe that Boys is a genius. Similarly, though I adore Julie Atherton, and saw Rebecca Lock and Clare Foster as Kate/Lucy, recent arrival Cassidy Janson gives the best Special I’ve ever seen or heard.

Chicago. I go back when there’s someone in the cast I really want to see. Does that make me a sucker and just like a tourist? Perhaps – although on my last trip, I hadn’t gone to see Destiny’s Child Michelle Williams as Roxie; I wanted to see Tiffany Graves on her return as Velma. That’s not to say I don’t buy tickets for celebrities – David Hasselhoff, Tony Hadley, Alison Moyet and Darius Danesh (seriously) were all good enough reasons for me to turn up.

The Rocky Horror Show. Yes, I’m one of the weirdos that follows the production around the country and dons a costume for the occasion. In direct contrast to Chicago, though, for this show, “name” casting isn’t important. Except for the narrator. If it’s Biggins, I’m DOUBLY there.

And having seen