ACCORDING to the blurb, "If you like Strictly Come Dancing you'll like this," and it's certainly true that those of us besotted by the sequins, the glamour, and the downright old-fashioned fun of the popular TV smash hit were in ballroom heaven with this spectacular dance show.
Hosted by Sophie Lawrence and the engaging Sam Kane, Simply Ballroom is a showcase for some brilliant ballroom dancing, choreographed by Strictly star couple Erin Boag and Anton Du Beke.
Although the pair don't actually appear, the show's six pro
fessional ballroom dancing pairs are magnificent, making dozens of quick costume changes in between their sambas, cha chas, rumbas, salsas and the like. The Viennese waltz was a real highlight, although the front stalls are maybe not the best place to appreciate the flowing footwork.
As well as the straightforward dance routines there are numbers from Grease and Dirty Dancing, and celebrations of "ballroom meeting Broadway". Apparently Debbie Reynolds hosted Simply Ballroom in the States earlier this year, and this show, touring for the past three years on the back of the Strictly phenomenon, has the feel of a glitzy US production.
But most of all it's like entertainment from an earlier era, maybe the old variety shows from the London Palladium in the 1960s and 70s, with big production values, when presenters could sing, dance, and crack irony-free jokes.
Despite the superb dancing, it was Sam Kane's personality that kept the show together. A kind of cross between Max Headroom and Dale Winton - all big cheesy grins and cheeky charm not to mention an unexpected Tom Jones-ish baritone – Sam (husband of former glamour model Linda Lusardi, as he told us early on) proved to have real old-fashioned star quality.
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