Arrowtown actress Nicole McLean swaps Prohibition-era vaudeville murderess Velma for Marie Dindon, the ''very conservative, very prudish'' wife of Edouard and mother of Anne in the French farce.
Queenstown actor David Oakley trades in the doormat husband Amos, ''Mr Cellophane'' himself, to become Edouard Dindon, Marie's ''bullish'' husband and Anne's ultra-conservative father, a leader of the ''Tradition, Family and Morality Party'' in the musical, which inspired the French movie adaptation and the Hollywood hit The Birdcage.
The moralistic Dindons' daughter Anne is engaged to young Jean-Michel, but unbeknown to the haughty couple, Jean-Michel is the son of Georges, the owner of a drag nightclub in Saint-Tropez, and his long-time lover Albin, who moonlights as the glamorous Zaza.
Madcap pandemonium ensues when the Dindons come calling to meet their new ''normal'' in-laws and the bonds of family are tested to the limit in a jubilant show, which has earned 11 Tony Awards.
Mrs McLean said Marie is ''quite naive and not picking up the clues'' about the real lifestyle of Georges and Albin.
''She has a bit of Velma inside her, dying to get out, but she's been kept under the thumb,'' she said.
''Velma is so strong and does exactly what she wants, but Marie is in the shadow of Edouard.''
Mr Oakley said it was fun to play a different character, to see what could be done.
While again the villain of the piece, the 36-year-old Englishman plays a 50-something Frenchman and a father for the first time, made even more unusual when his ''daughter'' is a friend and 20 years old.
While his own parents were not as strict with him growing up as Edouard is with Anne, Mr Oakley said he might be subliminally channelling his grandfather.
''I remember his sternness very well and how he could stop you with a look,'' he said.
Both entertainers agree La Cage Aux Folles will delight audiences over its seven consecutive nights, with its cheeky humour, moments of poignancy, fabulous costumes and energetic song and dance routines.
''It's a funny story with a message of love, important in this day and age,'' Mr Oakley said.
