Plenty of razzle-dazzle as Chicago heads to Eastbourne
The show is Chicago which comes to The Congress Theatre, Eastbourne from February 14-19. Set amidst the razzle-dazzle decadence of the 1920s, Chicago is the story of Roxie Hart, a housewife and nightclub dancer who murders her on-the-side lover after he threatens to walk out on her. Desperate to avoid conviction, she dupes the public, the media and her rival cellmate, Velma Kelly, by hiring Chicago’s slickest criminal lawyer to transform her malicious crime into a barrage of sensational headlines…
Djalenga said: “When we first started the tour, we were first show to come back for lots of theatres. We started in August/September time. I think the show had been put back by a few months, but we were just lucky to get out there and to be able to do the thing that we love doing and the response has been fantastic.
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Hide Ad“And I think people are just so keen to get out there. I just always hoped that we’d be able to get back one day to doing what we do in the big theatres with lots of people because theatre is so important. As an audience member sitting and watching, you just feel like you are so much part of the show. There is just nothing like watching a live performance because a live performance is never the same thing. It is always different and we have had an incredible reaction from audiences.
“(During the pandemic and the lockdowns) I did more screen work and I also did quite a lot of teaching on Zoom. I had lots of dance workshops and singing workshops. Dance was difficult but singing was even harder because of the delay but I think people just wanted to have contact and to make the connection and just still to be performing so it was great to do. Teaching is so rewarding. It’s making that connection, and I know I keep saying the word connection but it is so important. And I just loved seeing the students progress and seeing them find their confidence.
“But there is nothing quite like being back on stage, and I do think I’ve changed. I think everybody has changed. It’s impossible not to have changed. I think we all appreciate it all so much more and we just realise so much more why we are doing what we’re doing.”
Chicago is great show come back with: “I just think it stays so relevant. You think of all this striving for fame and the hunger for appreciation. If anything it has become even more relevant now. Plus you’ve got these incredible characters, these strong women that get to demonstrate so much. These are some of the best roles written for women and I absolutely adore Velma.
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Hide Ad“I have had a connection with the show since my early 20s. I was 21 when I first did the show. I understudied Velma and I went back to understudy again maybe ten or 11 years ago and to come back to it now is incredible. I feel I’ve matured. I’ve done a lot more in the meantime, and it’s wonderful to be back with the character.
“The great thing about the show is that every single character is so vital to it. There’s so much to see. The set is quite simple but it doesn’t really need anything too extravagant because of what we are all doing on the stage.”