Burn the Floor Dances into Shaftesbury, 21 Jul

Latin and ballroom dance show Burn the Floor will run at the Shaftesbury Theatre from 21 July to 4 September 2010, filling the space between last month’s closure of Hairspray and the opening of Flashdance in October (See News, 19 Mar 2010).

Featuring guest stars Brian Fortuna and Ali Bastian, the ‘golden couple’ from TV’s Strictly Come Dancing, the show is billed as an “electrifying latin and ballroom dance spectacular” and arrives in the West End following a worldwide tour including a run on Broadway last year.

First conceived as a special performance at Elton John‘s 50th birthday celebration in 1997, two years later the show made its world premiere in the UK and has since played in over 30 countries.  

From NYC’s Harlem, where dances such as the Lindy, Foxtrot and Charleston were born, to the Latin Quarter where the Cha-Cha, Rumba and Salsa steamed up the stage, Burn the Floor takes audiences on a journey through the passionate drama of dance. The elegance of the Viennese Waltz, the exuberance of the Jive, the intensity of the Paso Doble, as well as the Tango, Samba, Mambo, Quickstep, and Swing.  

The company features 20 dancers from around the globe, who “collectively hold more than 100 dance titles”, directed and choreographed by Jason Gilkison, a former world champion Latin and Ballroom dancer, and guest choreographer on the fourth season of So You Think You Can Dance (US).

For more dance coverage, visit whatsonstage.com/dance