Strictly season is in full swing, with this year’s cast of professional dancers and their celebrity partners taking to the studio floor every week from now until Christmas.
Fans of the dance contest can now see stunning routines up-close-and-personal in a new show, Legends of the Dance Floor, that reunites Strictly stars Brendan Cole, James Jordan, Pasha Kovalev, Vincent Simone and Ian Waite.
The “nostalgic celebration of Latin, ballroom, tango, rumba and so much more” will see the five former pros come together for the first time, along with a supporting cast of performers, to take audiences on a journey through their careers.
New Zealander Brendan, who appeared on the show 2004 to 2017, and Pasha, who is now married to his former dance partner Rachel Riley, both lifted the glitterball trophy.
Brendan won the very first series with newsreader Natasha Kaplinsky while Pasha competed in three finals and won in 2014 with the late TV presenter Caroline Flack.
Italian dancer Vincent was on Strictly from 2006 until 2012 and his celebrity partners included soap star Natalie Cassidy and pop star Rachel Stevens.
James, who was born in Medway, appeared on the show from 2006 to 2013 and Ian joined in series one and left five years later in 2009.
The group will be performing a number of routines, including a section dedicated to the late Robin Windsor, who appeared on the BBC One show between 2010 and 2013.
The dancer, who died in February at the age of 44, was originally set to feature in the current tour alongside his fellow pros.
“We do have a little section in our show where we mention the loved ones that belong to our world that are unfortunately no longer with us,” says 45-year-old Vincent. “And that’s a really lovely moment, like a memorial moment to them, like as an homage to a friendship – to the legend that Robin was as well. It is really sad, but hopefully we’re making him proud.”
Ian, 53, added: “He [Robin] was one of us and that’s what’s so bizarre about coming back together again, you realise how much you’ve got in common. Because of our years of history of competing as ballroom dancers and then our time on Strictly, you end up having so much in common that you are kind of the same people.”
Strictly is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year and launched last month with a new cast of celebs, including comedian Chris McCausland, Love Islander Tasha Ghouri, JLS singer JB Gill, Gladiator star Montell Douglas and EastEnders actor Jamie Borthwick.
However, despite the fact that the show holds a special place in their hearts, Pasha thinks there’s nothing quite like the atmosphere of a live audience on tour.
“Nothing can replace live theatre and when the five of us get together, you never know what to expect,” says the dad-of-two. ““The energy you get from this five on stage, dancing, having fun, chatting, talking to the audience, going back into the stories – they’ve been the memories of Strictly, the memories of our childhood and past professional careers. You cannot get it anywhere else.”
Legends of the Dance Floor will be at the Churchill Theatre in Bromley on Monday, October 21.
The tour then continues to the Orchard West Theatre in Dartford on Wednesday, October 23. Book tickets online here.
You can also find a full list of tour dates on the Legends of the Dance Floor website.
