Little Shop of Showstoppers

It's the quarter finals, it's Musicals Week, where the hell has the year gone?! Actually, this year's Musicals Week actually proved to be quite good, what with mostly-appropriate theming and no extra dancers, it meant the majority of dances looked like what they're supposed to. We also got a pretty awesome opener with the tribute to Priscilla Queen of the Desert, with even more camp and sequins than even Strictly usually manages. Curtain up, let's get on with this...

JJ and Amy 

This was pretty much the perfect choice for these two, family-friendly and cute with pretty outfits. Amy could easily be Truly Scrumptious, I wanted a more poofy dress! This, like last week, was FINE, but not much more. There needed to be more performance and Charleston zing. But it was all in time and JJ can swivel. Is this uneventful performance enough to save him for another week? 

Ranvir and Giovanni

I wasn't sure what to expect from this as I haven't seen Waitresses, but this was beautiful. The song brought a real sense of the dramatic to it, which is what Musicals Week should do without interfering. But it still needed their great partnership to lift what could have been a more subdued performance. And it wasn't just the performance, there was great hold and footwork, plus a fleckerl - hurrah!

 

Maisie and Gorka

I loved that they got Little Shop of Horrors, might as well give them something a bit bonkers to have fun with. The jive was always going to suit Maisie and she really pulled it off; I liked all the swing-jive bits in it that gave her more stuff to work with. Hilarious facial expressions too. It was sharp, funny and funky and it was also great to see them having such a rollocking good time! 

Bill and Oti

This felt like the one dance that was negatively impacted by the theme, but I think these two just about managed to pull it off! Bill is committed to technical detail and sharp footwork and that is what the Argentine Tango is about. They were never going to do a...sexy AT, so giving him the Phantom character meant he had something to work with. Not vintage Bill, but definitely showing he can do the technical stuff.

 

Harvey and Janette

Someone had to get the jazz-hands all-star spectacular rolled in glitter and it was these two! I think this was my favourite dance of Harvey's, he took on a massive routine but delivered it with musicality and great teamwork. A couple of slips and a never-ending-Janette lift meant it wasn't perfect, but they can definitely be proud of that performance. 

 

Jamie and Karen

This was very much the unknown quantity for the evening and when they were in the pimp slot I thought we were in for something spectacular. Alas, it was essentially a normal jive, which I wouldn't normally complain about but it didn't seem much after a Broadway showstopper. Jamie's timing has really improved and there's no way he could have done that dance in week one, but this wasn't particularly memorable, he could be in trouble this week.