Singin’ in the Rain fizzes at Royal Exchange, Manchester

Review by Steve Cooke

The Royal Exchange’s Singin’ in the Rain, uniquely in the round, literally splashes onto the stage in a fizzing, immersive production – if you are on the front row, you may well find a performer on your lap and wish you had brought a brolly!

This is nostalgia at its very best with the audience transported into a golden-age picture house of the classic MGM-era.

Raz Shaw’s direction sets the tone from the off with the explosion of a high energy rendition of Make ‘Em Laugh.

Alistair David’s choreography is an affectionate homage to vaudeville – joyfully deploying theatre in the round with tremendous skill.

The lighting designed by Jack Knowles transports the audience back to early film studios and music halls with glowing bulbs and warm ambers, contrastingly matching the choreography of the bigger numbers with swathes of dazzling brightness.

Laura Baldwin anchors the show as the unstoppable Lina Lamont with a genuinely memorable performance of perfect comic timing and charm. She is brilliantly complemented by Danny Collins as Cosmo Brown with a light footed effortlessly bouncy rhythm that keeps the show grounded amongst Old Hollywood chaos.

The story follows silent-movie star Don Lockwood (Louis Gaunt) as the late 1920’s Hollywood movie industry faces the arrival of talking pictures. As Lockwood’s latest silent film is hastily converted into a talkie the grating voice and ego of co-star, Lina Lamont threatens its success. Supported by his best friend Cosmo Brown and rising-star Kathy Seldon [Carly Mercedes Dyer] the production team strive to reinvent the film as a musical.

The audience are taken on a roller coaster journey of romance and the chaos of an industry in flux. 

 Singin’ in the Rain is a an upliftingly warm, thrilling, not to be missed revival that celebrates the very best in live theatre performance.

Playing at Manchester’s Royal Exchange theatre until Sunday 25th January 2026.

Further information and booking details: https://www.royalexchange.co.uk/event/singin-in-the-rain/#performances