Not the most slick show I have seen, but a funny, entertaining story with a stand-out performance by Maisie Smith.
‘Strictly Ballroom’ follows the story of Scott, an accomplished ballroom dancer, Fran, a beginner ballroom dancer, their contrasting families, and a struggle to break free from expectations and pressure. Set in Australia, it is a glitz-filled spectacle of dance and drama, with plenty of humour too. As a lover of dancing and musicals, I was very excited to get to see this show. I thought the storyline was simple enough for a musical but also much better than many I have seen, and the whole thing was very easy to follow with some solid characters and a good amount of comedy. The costumes, too, were dazzling and added a lot to the spectacle – no doubt Craig Revel Horwood’s taste was partly to thank!
The performance I watched was both the opening night at the Liverpool Empire, and included three understudies as lead roles. This may have been a reason, but I felt that the whole show didn’t flow as well as it could have, some parts felt a little flat and there were a few small errors which made it seem less professional than I’m sure it is usually. Occasionally a joke wouldn’t hit perfectly due to the lighting or sound not being on point, and there were a few line slips. Not to mention the sometimes-questionable Australian accents and a couple of distracting wigs! It didn’t hold my attention as well as usual and the first act seemed very long, but it definitely warmed up and the second act was smoother and quite funny. I particularly enjoyed the Paso Doble scene, and Mark Sangster’s character, Doug Hastings.
Maisie Smith gave a stand-out performance. Her voice is beautiful and unique, and her characterisation of her role of Fran was very good. I would also like to commend Nikki Belsher who performed the whole thing with one arm in a sling, which is no easy task. She did it so well that at the end of the show it turned out my friend hadn’t even noticed! Of course I don’t know the circumstances, but I would say if they had had time, the team could have worked it into the story or at least made some reference to it, as there was no suggestion it could have been part of her character. Another notable performance was the singing of Gary Davis, whose voice was strong, clear and carried particularly well.
Overall I felt I hadn’t seen this show to its full potential, but I still enjoyed it and had a laugh.
Reviewer: Rosie