On a nippy November night, just on the cusp of turning to winter, myself and my partner had the pleasure of being invited to review the latest Strictly Theatre Co. offering at the beautiful Buxton Opera House. As a not so fussed Strictly Come Dancing viewer my partner was semi hesitant about coming to watch “Showman: An evening with Anton Du Beke”, but after some arm pulling and fluttering of eyelashes he finally relented and I’m glad he did!
Accompanied by a supporting cast of 6, plus the dulcet tones of Lance Ellington, Anton Du Beke shone in this showcase of all things jazz and golden age. From dancing the Viennese waltz and Tango with the outstanding Polina Mayer, to joining the ensemble of an Irving Berlin mash up, this show had something for everyone.
Anton welcomed us as an audience with his smooth talking manner, fielding questions from the audience and answering them to the best of his ability (apart from this week’s Strictly results… boo) and also managed to deal with a rather rowdy set of ladies who may have had one too many sherry’s. We had stories of his whole career, from anecdotes of his first dance teacher in Sevenoaks, his partnering with Ann Widecombe and Nancy Dell Olio and his rather distaste for the Bay of Biscay when performing on cruise ships, all of which were expertly bounced off of by Lance Ellington to keep him on track and stop him straying too far. All of this was brilliant and tied the show together in a lovely manner, but let’s get down to what we were all here to watch… the dancing!
The show started strongly, with some solid ensemble partner work to set the bar for what to expect for the night. Du Beke soon joined with Mayer and shone as expected in the partner work, although some of the lifts chosen perhaps left a bit to be desired in terms of what we know he can do. The performance really excelled though when the ensemble left and it was just the two left to command a whole auditorium with their movement, and you had the whole venue sat awestruck by their sensual tango. A pleasant surprise was the comical dance lesson we got in the Viennese Waltz, showcasing not only Du Beke’s skill as a teacher but also a showman in terms of his ability to have a room hanging on every word. All in all, Act 1 was a brilliant half and was well worth the admission.
And then came Act 2. Not that it was bad, but after a sublime first act, a lukewarm opening stretch to the second act was not what I was expecting. All in all the second act felt a little under rehearsed compared to the first, and you particularly felt this during the musical theatre mashup. From some very basic tap steps being mucked up to lifts taking place out of time and legs and arms all over the place and at different heights this lacked the refined touch that the more classic Anton sequences had in the first act and made you feel that these shows should maybe stick more to this. Not in terms of his singing though which was actually a very pleasant surprise, I had no idea he had those pipes on him and he more than managed to hold his own alongside his more experienced colleague. The ensemble were solid throughout and the band were sublime, giving the show that rich feel you associate with old school jazz.
All in all the show was very enjoyable and if you can look over the lack of polish in the second act, which I’m sure will have already been dealt with by the time you are reading this, then I would absolutely recommend picking this night with a classic showman up while you can.
Reviewer: Natasha Aspden
Reviewed: 17th November 2024
North West End UK Rating: