No stranger to the spotlight himself, Craig Revel Horwood now goes behind the scenes to direct a brand-new stage show based on Baz Luhrmann’s hit 1992 movie, Strictly Ballroom. Starring Kevin Clifton and Maisie Smith in the lead roles, the production this month embarks on a UK tour, stopping off at two Midlands venues along the way. What’s On recently caught up with Craig to find out more...   

Professional dancers may look amazing as they trip the light fantastic in shows such as Strictly Come Dancing, but it takes them years of hard graft to reach the top of their trade. So says Strictly judge Craig Revel Horwood, who is directing and co-choreographing Strictly Ballroom, a brand-new stage production about the challenges of making it big in the dance world.

Based on the hit 1992 Baz Luhrmann film of the same name and coming to Birmingham Hippodrome in October and the Wolverhampton Grand next February, the show tells the tale of Scott Hastings, a rebellious young competitor who defies the judges and is forced to dance with beginner Fran. The tour stars Strictly professional Kevin Clifton as Scott and EastEnders actress and Strictly finalist Maisie Smith as Fran.

“This show introduces people to the backstage world,” says Craig. “Everyone who watches Strictly Come Dancing is seeing the glossy side of it, but Strictly Ballroom delves into the hearts and minds of the people doing the dance - the trials and tribulations they have to go through in order to get to that competition standard. It’s about the fight and struggle, and all the animosity that’s involved in it to win the day and become a gold medallist. It's about dancing with your heart rather than just dancing the steps.

“It’s an age-old story, with really dark and sinister characters, that culminates in high comedy. It tells the story of true-to-life Latin and ballroom dancing, where you’ve got the pushy parents and the amateurs having to spend all their money on costumes and fake tans. And they’re in a very insular world - the circle of people where winning the competition is a matter of life and death.” 

It has been a battle to bring the Strictly Ballroom tour to life, with Covid scuppering plans for the last two years. Craig is delighted that the show is finally taking to the road.

“It’s been quite a long time in the making -  about three-and-a-half years. I secured Kevin Clifton for the show two-and-a-half years ago and was delighted. He left Strictly in order to do this particular musical because it was his lifelong dream to play the role of Scott Hastings. 

“Then of course Covid struck, and that put us back two years. Having to wait, like everyone did, during Covid was horrific, but it did give us time to think about it, and to develop the set and the script. I feel relieved that audiences are finally going to get to see it, and see my vision of it as well as Kevin’s and Maisie’s.

“It’s Kevin’s life, and he’s been wanting to do this for the last 25 years. Scott is a huge role and a fantastic one. Kevin can show off not only his dancing skills but also his acting - and his Australian accent, which he’s very proud of! And of course we have Maisie, who’s a fantastic actor, a brilliant singer and a brilliant dancer, as we already know because we saw Kevin and Maisie dance in the Children In Need special back in 2019, which they went on to win. Then she did the full show of Strictly, became a finalist in that, and people fell in love with her all over again.”

Craig may be best known to audiences for his role as the grumpy judge in Strictly Come Dancing, but he also has an impressive CV as a choreographer, director, actor and writer, working on countless West End shows and national tours, including Spend Spend Spend, My One And Only, Chess and Sister Act. And he knows only too well the obstacles young male dancers can sometimes face.

“Like Baz Luhrmann, I’m Australian. I left Australia in 1988, and when the movie of Strictly Ballroom came out, I saw my life flashing before my eyes on the screen. Dance has been a passion all my life, and dancing was at the forefront of Strictly Ballroom, long before Strictly Come Dancing. 

“The motto of Strictly Ballroom, which resonated with me, is what Fran says to Scott: ‘A life lived in fear is a life not lived’. I think that’s true of everyone in the world; you shouldn’t live in fear of failure. To have convictions, to have a passion, to follow it and not be scared to do it - that’s what makes people what they are. 

“I have applied that motto to my life, by not listening to people and by believing in myself. I was fearless. I had to be. I was bullied at school. I didn’t want anyone to know that I was dancing, because of people’s attitude towards it when I was growing up. 

“It’s a lot easier today to say you want to study dance, but I was studying classical ballet. Wearing a pair of tights was not cool in Ballarat in Australia, so I hid that from people. But I still followed my passion, and you end up having to be fearless. Any horrible comments that people made, I let them slip like water off a duck’s back, because I had a dream and I stuck to it. You will do well in life if you have a passion and a dream, and I encourage all people to follow it and not live in fear.”

Craig’s determination has certainly paid off. Highly regarded within the theatrical world, he returns to the small screen with Strictly Come Dancing this autumn.

“I can’t wait for Strictly to come back. People often say to me, ‘It’s your 20th series, aren’t you bored of it yet? Are you considering leaving?’ I always reply that I love it. I get the best seat in the house for some of the best dancing and some of the worst dancing that the UK will ever see. And how wonderful is that? For me, it’s different every time because you get different stories, different people. It’s a change of cast each year, so each year it feels like a brand-new show but with the same format. It’s brilliant!”  

Diane Parkes

Strictly Ballroom shows at Wolverhampton Grand Theatre from Monday 13 to Saturday 18 February.