Mr Newell welcomed invited guests to a ''sneak peak'' of La Cage aux Folles last week at the venue where it will be performed from September 1 to 7, the Queenstown Memorial Centre.
Director Bryan Aitken introduced the black-clad ensemble and their musical accompaniment and primed the intimate gathering on what the play was all about and where it came from.
The Cage of Madwomen was a Broadway show with roots in 19th-century European comic operettas, Mr Aitken said.
Based on the 1973 French play of the same name by Jean Poiret, the musical had swept the board at award ceremonies after every revival and was essentially ''a love story as pertinent and as dynamic as ever'', he said.
The audience was treated to a handful of scenes and song performances by the principal cast and ensemble,Alex Derbie stars as Georges, the owner of a Saint-Tropez nightclub featuring drag acts, such as his flamboyant partner Albin, played with gusto by Rutene Spooner.
Farce ensues when the gay couple are urged to play straight by their son, Jean-Michel, played by Finley Brentwood, to please the moralistic parents of his fiancee when both families meet for the first time.
Musical co-director Emma Wilson, working with co-director Michael Bell, said the production was full of ''jolly tunes with strong melodies the audience will come out singing''.
Mr Aitken presented examples of the glamorous costumes some cast members would wear. Garments were either sourced from Melbourne, or were made especially for the Queenstown show by costumier Chris Pickard.
• La Cage aux Folles is staged in the Queenstown Memorial Centre on September 1 to 7. Tickets are on sale now from the centre, i-Site Queenstown Visitor Centre and Ticketek.
