Puttin on the Ritz

A slightly strange tour this one as the "stars" vary from place to place and on at least one occasion the show is on at two separate venues at the same time with two different casts. So, while we had Ray Quinn (who wont appear on Saturday), Robin Windsor, Anya Garnis, Trent Whiddon and Gordana Grandosek in Bristol the show was also on in Cheltneham with Katya Virshilas and Jared Murillo. 

So let's look at the show first.

Sorry to say this is a poor attempt. The set, which doesn't change during the show, has the look of an amateur build and blocks off so much of the stage that the dancers are left going up and down a corridor rather than sweeping freely around - it lends nothing to the show but a slightly tacky feel. The projections are fun but the lighting, being entirely behind the proscenium arch (expect for follow spot) give a curiously brash look. The sound system was badly placed and more suited to a village hall than an huge auditorium like the Hippodrome in which it sounded frankly lost. There is no live orchestra so everything is done to a karaoke soundtrack and the dancers tap to a click-track. I absolutely hate click-tracks, especially when the dancers are clearly capable of pulling off the steps.

One of the huge downsides of a karaoke track is that the singers and dancers have no ability to vary the delivery and at times it seemed like both were being dragged headlong through the numbers barely able to draw breathe. While the singers are excellent, I was especially enamoured of Lance Ellington's voice, the arrangements are very lift-music and samey - a dreaful thing to do to such lyrical, beautiful and well know numbers. The chorus dancers were all competent but mostly acted more as individual pairs than a "team" with little attention to "doing the same thing at the same time the same way" which lent a rather messy overall view to the staging - often they looked disengaged with the process (I think I was too).

At this point you might wonder why I gave it 2 stars ... well, the professional dancers were fabulous darling, despite the constrained stage space they were given and Ray Quinn was a bit of a revelation - a real entertainer in the old sense of the word, I only wish he had been able to interact properly rather than being driven by the soundtrack. The dancers did come into their own for a few numbers and showed real talent and sparkle - particlarly the high energy tap numbers and the Maple Leaf Rag (I have seen similar choreography before but it always impresses, not least because people have tried to teach me synchro-clapping and failed!) - they clearly enjoyed these and consequently so did we.

We have all seen Strictly Come Dancing - its part of the draw to this show which is part populated by Strictly professionals - so we know what a bit of glitz and glamour is supposed to look like, we have the tools to assess and evaluate dance routines and we expect something a bit above the average. 

In summary, some great performs straight jacketed into a half-hearted production ... not the show I wanted it to be.