Opening Night verdict ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Oozing with colour, sparkle and sass Strictly Ballroom is a feisty and fun production which will leave you grinning from ear to ear and digging out your dance shoes.

Based on Baz Luhrman’s iconic 1992 film, the first of his Red Curtain Trilogy which would also include Romeo & Juliet and Moulin Rouge, Strictly Ballroom is all about breaking the rules and following your heart.

Ballroom dancer Scott Hasting (Jonny Labey) dreams of dancing his own steps, he yearns to break away from the rigid rules of the ballroom dancing federation and feed his passion for performance on his own terms. Unfortunately his pushy mother Shirley (Anna Francolini) has other ideas.

Forever in the background Fran (Zizi Strallen) picks up on Jonny’s burning ambitions and begs for the chance to dance with him, cue an ultimately sparkling relationship which takes them both on a journey neither could have predicted. Labey and Strallen burst with vibrancy and breath-taking talent; they excel in the grand extravagant numbers and fizz with passion in the sharp, intimate duets, their movements precise and expressive. Director Drew McOnie has woven dance so beautifully into every aspect of this production with feelings and thoughts being expressed through the most sublime of movements, it’s a joy to watch.

Will Young takes on the role of Willy Strand, specially created for the stage production Strand acts as MC and narrator for the evening, guiding the audience through the story with beautifully interwoven songs including Love Is in the Air, I Wanna Dance with Somebody and Slave To The Rhythm. Young’s vocals are smooth as honey, he has a great ability to add depth and emotion to each and every song, this paired with his cheeky, glint in the eye narration ensures a perfect pace is maintained throughout. There is little interaction between Strand and the characters but the role works remarkably well.

The cast are enormously strong and burst with talent in this camp and creative extravaganza. Each character larger than life adding injections of humour in every scene. Charlotte Gooch is mind-blowingly perfect as Tina Sparkle as she pulls out moves that would leave most of us calling for an ambulance, Gary Watson is deliciously camp as ballroom dance champ Ken Railings while Lauren Stroud delivers the part of Liz Holt, Jonny’s original pouting partner with perfection.

Costume designer Catherine Martin must have cleared out the sequin section of every haberdashery south of the Watford Gap with her dazzling costumes matching gloriously the high-energy of the on-stage performances.

Strictly Ballroom is joyful, over the top escapism, bursting with colour, enormously funny with an uplifting story of self-expression at its heart. It will make you smile from start to finish through every bright, bold and sensational moment of this visually stunning show. Exhilarating theatre which delivers as every level.

On at the Piccadilly theatre, currently booking until October, tickets available here.