Let's Dance for Comic Relief - Week Two Blog

Thursday 28th February

After last week’s array of not quite iconic dances, the field was wide open in the second round of heats of Let’s Dance for Comic Relief. This week I watched the show accompanied by my gran and her, shall we say, firm opinions, giving this week’s judges Jason Manford, Paloma Faith and Lisa Riley a run for their money.

Opening the show were the cast of Waterloo Road as the Spice Girls, which was a lot of fun, especially with the men who adapted to their female alter ego very enthusiastically. Unfortunately mid-way through my gran and I realised simultaneously that the man dressed as Posh Spice looked uncannily like me – a sobering moment which cast a shadow over the performance.

Jon Culshaw’s brilliant repertoire of impressions suggested he would be perfect for Let’s Dance, but rather than impersonate anyone in particular he undertook a routine to Fatboy Slim involving an exciting dash from Television Centre reception to the studio. Unfortunately once he got there all he had the energy left to do was leap around a bit aimlessly. Shot down by my gran with the judgement that it was “galumphing”.

Kim of ‘Kim and Aggie’ fame confusingly turned up without her partner but with TV chef Rosemary Shrager instead. I wondered why Aggie hadn’t signed up, until I saw the horrific dresses they had been lumbered with, the lifts that almost ended in disaster, and the pair’s vague grasp of the choreography. Aggie was probably wise to avoid, but Kim and Rosemary were certainly this week’s good sports.

Comedienne Katherine Ryan, frequenter of 8 Out of 10 Cats, took on Nicki Minaj with a hilariously accurate bodysuit and a send-up of Minaj’s irritating style that Culshaw would have been proud of. Closing the show was Antony Cotton, backed by my gran due to him being “such a gentle looking person”. Despite randomly setting his routine in an old people’s home, Cotton proved to be the star of the night, revealing his hidden tap-dancing talent. As Jason Manford noted, he was almost too good for the show, although he wouldn’t be the first tap-dancing winner if he managed to go all the way.

It seems as if the awkward karaoke competition held backstage whilst votes are counted is unfortunately becoming a weekly feature of the show, along with the at best mildly amusing pre-dance videos accompanied by a deafening laughter track featuring the world’s most easily amused audience. The videos reporting on Comic Relief’s various missions and reminiscing over the best bits of 25 years of the telethon are a much more worthwhile way to fill time.

Unsurprisingly Antony Cotton sailed through to the final, whilst the gloriously dramatic Paloma Faith decided to send Katherine Ryan through (once she was reminded of her name). Next week is the last round of heats before the final, and with Justin Bieber set to perform, at least the celebrity contestants can rest safe in the knowledge that they won’t be the worst thing to grace the stage that evening.

Viva Forever! - Review

Not a TV review, but an amazing musical which I reviewed for the Yorker.

Monday 10th December 2012

 

Viva Forever, the long-awaited musical based around the hits of the Spice Girls, has finally arrived to spice up the West End. For anyone who lived and breathed the Spice Girls in their 90s childhood (and if you didn’t, then you made some poor life choices), this was a much anticipated chance to relive the heyday of girl power.

Having bumped into Olympian Louis Smith on my way to the theatre, I was already pretty hysterically excited, which is probably the perfect mood to be in for this musical. Produced by Mamma Mia mastermind Judy Craymer and penned by comedy legend Jennifer Saunders, Viva Forever follows Viva (Hannah John-Kamen), a talent show hopeful and member of a spirited girl group, whose loyalty to her mother and friends is tested as she struggles with overnight fame and the machinations of her mentor (Sally Dexter).

While satirising the evils of a contrived reality show is hardly a new idea, even the caricatures are tackled with such verve that it feels fresh. The plot plays with the themes of the original Girl Power group – friendship, loyalty and fun – but bases little on the band themselves. Perhaps I’m biased, but it felt much more clever and self-aware than Craymer’s previous hit musical.

The audience were buzzing with excitement before the curtain was raised, and a fantastic opening sending up talent show clichés before exploding into the unmistakeable sound of Wannabe sent the atmosphere into fever pitch. The exuberant cast, particularly the band members (Siobhan Athwal, Lucy Phelps, and Dominique Provost-Chalkley), brought irrepressible energy, and portrayed the all-important group dynamic completely believably. I only wish we’d seen more of them – whilst Viva was wonderful, the relationship between the group, particularly during their anarchic rendition of Stop, was brilliant, and could easily have borne more time on stage. The ending was pure uplifting joy, even before the obligatory sing-a-long to finish.

The show bears the clear stamp of Saunders, with Sally Ann Triplett as Viva’s mother occasionally resembling Ab Fab’s Eddie, and also in Saunders’ keen eye for humour in the songs - her re-imaginings of Too Much and 2 Become 1 were particular highlights. Overall the Spice Girls’ back catalogue was wrestled into a narrative surprisingly well, and a nice balance was struck between classics, imaginative re-workings and mash-ups, with even some lesser known songs included (although we could have done without Let Love Lead the Way. No one likes that one).

For those of us whose childhood was defined by the Spice Girls, it is undoubtedly one of the best feel-good musicals around. Suffice to say, if the thought of leaping out of your seat to bounce along to Spice Up Your Life fills you with dread, then it’s advisable to steer clear. But the irresistible charm of the lively cast and the enduringly catchy music mean it’s hard to walk away from Viva Forever without a huge smile and the urge to listen to Wannabe on repeat. A reminder that no girl band has come close to the iconic hits, charisma and sheer joy the Spice Girls brought, it’s fantastic to have a home for them on the West End – I will definitely be going again.