#strictly ballroom uk tour

[dxntloseurhead]

green really is liv’s colour, huh?

[martyn7985]

Strictly Ballroom: The Musical will waltz around the Venue Cymru start fro the 24th October Based on Baz Luhrmann’s award-winning worldwide film phenomenon, Strictly Ballroom: The Musical is heading out on a brand-new UK and Ireland tour starring Strictly Come Dancing favourite Kevin Clifton and BBC’s Eastenders’ Maisie Smith! Directed and co-choreographed by Britain’s best loved TV…

[the-hindu-times]

Dancing in a Winter Wonderland

London Coliseum 8/12/23

Bringing together the magic of Christmas were 'Strictly' favourites, Janette Manrara and Aljaž Škorjanec, with their second UK tour 'Dancing in a Winter Wonderland'.

There was a consistent flow of joy and sharp choreography throughout the show; not only from the couple but also their talented supporting ensemble - eight beautiful dancers and two singers, Miranda Wilford and Adrian Hansel, whom not only sang but also impressively joined in with some of the routines. The costumes throughout were just gorgeous - especially some of the dresses worn by Janette and Faye.

Janette was a firecracker; she danced with endless energy, looked stunning throughout and confidently addressed the captivated audience, who watched on in amazement at how strong her singing voice was, as she sang two solo songs - a woman of many talents!

Aljaz was funny and charming throughout with his self-deprecating humour; it was particularly wonderful to see his ballroom dances. It was a real joy to see the couple dance together; especially hearing them talk about being first time parents and their first Christmas with their 4-month-old daughter, Lyra, which they illustrated at the start of the Disney section with a beautiful ballroom dance to ‘When You Wish Upon a Star’.

There was a wider variety of dance styles throughout the show, which the entire cast danced with expertise, energy and emotion. Another of my favourite moments was when Janette led a carnival style song from West Side Story, before ending with a nod to the recent passing of Shane McGowen, with 'Fairytale of New York'. This felt so theatrical as the entire cast helped to transport us all to their pub scene, which was brilliantly choreographed and easily gained the biggest cheers. There was a huge emphasis on love, kindness and the true meaning of Christmas throughout, and Janette and Aljaz truly delivered on all three by sharing, not only their talent but also their personal lives with us.

Mittal Patel

[centrestagereviews]

Actor of the Week: Justin-Lee Jones

Actor of the Week: Justin-Lee Jones

Justin-Lee’s theatre work includes: Priscilla Queen Of The Desert (UK tour); On The Town (Hyogo Performing Arts Centre, Tokyo); West Side Story (Royal Exchange Theatre); Strictly Ballroom (Piccadilly Theatre); An American In Paris (Dominion Theatre); Chicago (UK tour); Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (UK tour) and Disney’s Tarzan (Hamburg / Stuttgart). His TV and film work includes: Helene Fischer Show…

[skippyv20]

Wonderful!  Thank you😊❤️❤️❤️❤️

The Duchess of Cornwall carries out engagements in London

The Duchess of Cornwall visited the Victory Services Club, in her role as Patron-in-Chief, to tour the newly refurbished facilities, including a dining space, kitchens and a new lounge conference room.

The Club was founded in 1907 to promote ‘esprit de corps’ among retired members of the Armed Forces. The Club now has 64,000 members, drawn from the UK Armed Forces, the former serving communities, the Commonwealth and NATO. As a registered Charity the Club offers Respite & Welfare Breaks to recommended personnel who have suffered a significant welfare issue or injury whilst serving. The breaks include a two-night stay, breakfast, lunch and dinner and tickets to a top London attraction for all the family.

During the tour of the new facilities, The Duchess also saw the newly installed accessible lift, which was partly funded by Help for Heroes, before watching chefs demonstrate some of their work.

At the Club, The Duchess also attended a reception and tea dance to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the British Dance Council, which is the regulator and co-ordinating body for Ballroom, Latin, Classical Sequence and Freestyle Dancing. During the visit, Her Royal Highness met British Ballroom Champion and British Latin Champion dancers before dancing with former Strictly Come Dancing Head Judge Len Goodman.

As President of The Royal Osteoporosis Society, Her Royal Highness also met supporters who encourage dance as a means of keeping your bones healthy. Alongside the physical benefits, the British Dance Council aims to promote the cultural and educational benefits derived from ballroom dancing.

She said:

I just wanted to say as President of the Royal Osteoporosis Society how important dancing is for our bones.

I think if we could get a lot more people on to the dancefloor and get them taking this very enjoyable form of exercise, we would be able to do a lot of good for osteoporosis because that sort of exercise improves your bones.

Finally, The Duchess visited the Royal School of Needlework, of which Her Royal Highness is Patron, to launch the new ‘Faces and Figures in Stitch’ exhibition at Hampton Court Palace.

The Duchess saw her own embroidered portrait which will feature in the exhibit amongst over 100 other embroideries of key figures in history, including William Shakespeare, Nelson Mandela and David Bowie.

[thecourtneychronicles]

“Courtney Act has some advice for Strictly Come Dancing.

Everyone’s favourite Aussie drag queen-turned-reality TV darling made history when she became the first person to dance with a same-sex partner on Dancing With The Stars, and now she thinks it’s time the UK caught up.

“Any excuse about the traditions of ballroom dancing and all that sort of jazz, it kind of starts to sound a little bit awkward now that we’ve done it in Australia,” she tells GAY TIMES. “I think it’s definitely time.”

As she prepares to grace London’s Underbelly Festival with her show Under The Covers, we spoke to the Aussie queen about her time on Dancing With The Stars, who she wants to see on Drag Race UK, and what makes our drag unique.

Congratulations on making the finals of Dancing With The Stars – how are you feeling about that whole journey?

Thank you! Oh my god, it was just so magical and so much fun, but it was also so much hard work, it was four months of dancing and we were rehearsing for at least six hours a day, and I think I had about three days off in the whole four months. I got to tell so many stories on mainstream television, it was just amazing. Somebody’s made a supercut of all of the dances on YouTube, and my dance partner Josh sent it to me and we both sat there watching it and reminiscing over the phone.

Based on your track record, you really were destined to win. Are you a bit gutted about that?

You know what, this sounds really trite, but I feel like we did win. From the judges points we did actually win every episode except for episode four, but then we were pipped at the post by Samuel Johnson, who is actually so lovely. I remember him in the first promo shoot and I was like, ‘Oh, she’ll be out first’, but he actually was just amazing and he got better and better every week, and also he’s an amazing fundraiser in Australia, his sister unfortunately died of cancer a few years ago and he vowed to raise $10 million for cancer research, and so he’s on this big journey of his own and people really love that cause, and it is a very worthy cause. So I in no way felt gutted, I felt really, really happy for him. And we got to do so many cool things! We were the first same-sex dance partnership [on the show], which was amazing, and so many of the performances were kind of risque, like going from Courtney to Shane in the space of one minute and 20 seconds. That was dangerous, but it worked.

Did you face any resistance from the show when you decided to dance as Shane?

No, they were totally supportive! I think I used the Courtney Act patented lubing technique to get them used to the idea, so I thought, ‘I’ll just get in there, I’ll be fabulous and have fun, and show them there’s nothing to be afraid of’, then in episode three I did the Courtney-to-Shane Tango which they loved, and then the Samba in episode four was our first sexy dance, and I kind of loved that people were seeing this was a guy dressed as a girl dancing sexy with another man. And I was planning to do something as Shane but I couldn’t quite find the right time, and then the Tango-Foxtrot came up and I was like, ‘Oh good, this is like a sexy, intimate, romantic dance so it’s not like we’re just doing the Jive next to each other’. I wanted people to see two male-presenting people in each other’s arms. I remember the first time I saw two men dancing the Tango together I was shocked, and I remember how confronting it was for my brain, even though I’m a queer person just to see two men dancing romantically was like, ‘Wow!’ and I figured there’s probably a lot of people around Australia who still haven’t seen that, so to get to do that on Dancing With The Stars and hopefully help to normalise it and create a positive example is a really amazing opportunity.

There’s a debate in the UK about having same-sex partners on Strictly Come Dancing, but the show still won’t let it happen. Do you think it’s time for that?

Absolutely, and I think there’s got to be a same-sex couple on Strictly this year. There just has to be. It’s not even a question in my mind. It would just seem really weird not to. And I mean, Craig Revel Horwood was a judge on our version as well, and he’s a judge on Strictly, so I think it’s definitely time. Because like, any excuse about the traditions of ballroom dancing and all that sort of jazz, it kind of starts to sound a little bit awkward now that we’ve done it in Australia.

You’re bringing Under The Covers to London’s Underbelly Festival this month, what we expect?

Well I did the show around the UK last year, and I did it in London at the Palladium which is this ginormous venue which where the front row was like 20 metres away, so it wasn’t very intimate, but this is a gorgeous intimate venue and I’m doing it with a live band this time. Last time I just did it with a piano, so I’m excited for that. After doing – and then losing – Eurovision: Australia Decides, and then performing with Jake Shears when he opened for Kylie on her Australian tour, I was just like, ‘Oh my god, I love live music so much’, so I knew I had to do my Under The Covers show with a live band. There’s loads of great songs and costumes, we’ve updated all that, there’s lots of stories about Dancing With The Stars, and maybe a little ballroom dancing in there too.

Well, you spent all that time learning, you may as well show it off.

Yeah, exactly! Also, like, the fitness level I achieved from dancing that much, I’m now working hard to not just go back to my regular sloth-like self. So I might try to keep it up in my show.

How do you decide what songs you want to perform for Under The Covers?

Well they’re all famous covers of covers, so I have a giant spreadsheet, and I spent weeks Googling and I put every cover song that I could find on there, and then I picked out ones that I’d like to do, that I could sing well, and that the audience would enjoy, and then I’ve tried to put it together following the loose theme of my show. So for example, Bjork’s It’s Oh So Quiet is such a great song, and that’s a cover from a Betty Hutton song in 1951, and that was a cover of a 1948 song that was originally in German, Und jetzt ist es still, which is German for It’s Oh So Quiet. Lot’s of people don’t know that.

We also have Drag Race UK coming up this year. Having lived in London for a while now, what do you think international audiences will find unique about British drag?

I can’t wait, because I love watching Drag Race but I feel like the drag has been coming through the same filter for a few seasons now. I mean, coming from Australia to the US, I love the pageant drag, I love all the different styles of drag, but I feel like the UK is just going to inject a breath of fresh air into the show. Have you seen any of Drag Race Thailand?

I saw a clip where one of the contestants [Kandy Zyanide] set her dress on fire, which was incredible.

Yes! I saw that one too. Unfortunately she did suffer burns after that, so don’t try that at home. But it’s just amazing how there’s a whole culture and sensibility in the UK, and the history of drag and camp that is part of pop culture there is going to be wonderful. I’m really excited to see the injection of fresh talent, and that fresh approach to drag and how it will shake up and influence the US version.

Are there any UK queens that you would like to see on the show?

I’d love to see Cheddar Gorgeous and the House of Gorgeous, they’re amazing. The UK has so many legendary queens, who I don’t think would necessarily be right for Drag Race, like all the East London queens that I love. People like Jonny Woo and his clan are all epic, although I don’t really picture them competing on Drag Race. So I’m gonna go with Cheddar and her clique, I think they’re pretty epic.

Courtney’s interview with Gay Times Magazine - May 3, 2019

[tiogreenapblen1988-blog]

A former federal agent in the northeastern United States who received such tips from SOD described the process. "You be told only, 'Be at a certain truck stop at a certain time and look for a certain vehicle. And so we alert the state police to find an excuse to stop that vehicle, and then have a drug dog search it," the agent said. Even though the have had a few misses, over all I think they are excellent quality. Every other drugstore eyeshadow I tried had been a dud. So I generally stick to high end. Erzsbet (Elizabeth) Bathory, a Hungarian countess, is believed to have killed as many as 650 people during the 54 years she lived. 제주도출장안마 And exactly how the world's most prolific serial killer took the lives of her victims has proven grisly fodder for storytellers. Bram Stoker is believed to have been inspired by the countess: His Count Dracula is supposedly a hybrid of Wallachian prince Vlad Tepes and Bathory [source: NNDB].. They sell for $27.50 plus tax. As someone who used all kinds of drugstore and mid end mascara, I think outrageously expensive mascara is bullshit.I do prefer Lancome eyeshadows and maybe their lip products, but if I didn work for the company I don think I really use a lot of their stuff.Oh, and honestly, the skincare from both are sort of ridiculous. I mean, they work, but for what price? You can usually get very effective products for MUCH less. If your argument is that the game could be better in this regard, in several areas, I think you find broad agreement for it. Events being tied to RNG, and sometimes coming in fits and starts can be very frustrating. The game is 제주도출장안마 not inherently easy or intuitive, and kingdom management can be easier to screw up (and harder to fix) than combat or poor character building.. But the evening before my Dad passed away, I went to visit him. He smiled so brightly at me, which was the first time he smiled in a few days. And as I cried and hugged him, convinced something was wrong. "Fighting! The American North Atlantic squadron and pretty nearly the whole of our fleet. Our Eiserne Kreuz has had a gruelling and is sinking, and their Miles Standish she's one of their biggest has sunk with all hands. Torpedoes, I suppose. Not sure if this qualifies as ice cream. But theres a place called Snowdays and they serve shaved cream. Sort of a combination of ice cream and shaved ice. I got my makeup done when I was a student and the eyes were way too dark, even though I'd asked for a natural look. I'm NC15 so it just made me look washed out. Luckily the MUA fixed it up for me and all was well, but personally I think she should of paid you SOMETHING you did give her your time after all!. WAIT. I don like my milk really cold. It hurts my teeth. I spend 7/9 school periods alone in the nurses office with nothing to do instead of just letting me go about my school day. My eye wasn't even red by the time I got picked up. Goes without saying my mom was pissed. Luckily I did it in the summer time where I had my hair up 90% of the time and because most people are out and about/on vacation no one really cared or noticed. It gradually improved. Id say the first 2 weeks were terrible and then week 3 4 were not bad. Only problem is the national wheather station will strike and that might result in the planes not leaving CPH. If we get lockoutet the Whole country will shut Down, I sure. It will suck.. Dianne Buswell is an Australian Open Champion and four time Amateur Australian Open Finalist. She has danced all around the world as part of the ballroom and Latin touring company Burn the Floor. Dianne was a professional dancer on the Australian version of Strictly Come Dancing before joining the UK series in 2017.

[outoftowninac]

THE MUSIC MASTER

1904

The Music Master is a three act play by Charles Klein. It was staged and produced by David Belasco. After trying out in Atlantic City and Philadelphia, the play opened on Broadway at the Belasco Theatre before transferring to the Bijou Theatre to finish its run of 627 performance. 

THE STORY: Herr von Barwig, a foreign musician, lives in poverty in New York. A young girl comes from uptown, and Barwig consents to teach her music. The girl confides in him, and a bond grows between them. We realize that this girl is his daughter, the little girl whom his wife took with her when she ran away from Germany with an American who had become rich. Barwig almost tells his secret, but on her wedding day, she wrings the truth from him.

David Belasco was known to rewrite plays he directed, so with many of his plays, including this one, he sometimes receives a co-author credit as well. Klein was heavily influenced by another play by Felix Morris called The Old Musician. 

The cast was led by David Warfield in the title role. He stayed with the show for its entire run, and later toured extensively with the play. Ten years after it closed on Broadway, it was revived at the Knickerbocker Theatre, once again starring Warfield.  

Warfield toured the play for two decades. Postcards were issued of him in the role. 

Belasco later wrote of his working relationship with Warfield, including the above  anecdote.

The New York Times praised Warfield’s acting, but insisted the play had failed. Three years later...

Despite this, the play ran three years - taking summers off and returning two seasons in a row. 

Freed from Belasco’s theatrical influence, Klein published the play as a novel in 1909. Klein did, however, credit Belasco, and dedicated the book to Warfield. 

In the UK, the play was first seen in Edinburgh, before moving to London in the fall of 1927 at the Lyceum where Warfield’s role was played by Harry Green. 

In 1927 there was also a silent film adaptation of The Music Master, which is now considered lost. Alec B. Francis played the title role. Also in the cast were ubiquitous character actor Charles Lane, and Neil Hamilton (Commissioner Gordon on TV’s “Batman”). 

ATLANTIC CITY

But The Music Master began life at Young’s Ocean Pier on the Boardwalk in Atlantic City, one of the seaside resort’s first out-of-town tryouts for a Broadway show, and also Belasco’s first time.  

Young’s Ocean Pier started life as Applegate Pier in 1884. It was purchased by entrepreneur John L. Young in 1891, and expanded to include rides (including one of the Boardwalk's first thrill rides, the Flip-Flop Railroad), midway games, and even an electric trolley. To attract more crowds, Young installed an aquarium, ballrooms, and booked regular band concerts. Performances were given in the pier’s theatre including the Atlantic City debut of actress Sarah Bernhardt. With the success of Ocean Pier, Young built another, larger pier, Young's Million Dollar Pier, which opened in 1906. 

He was also lucky to have had the vision and funds to build the new pier because on March 29, 1912, Young's Ocean Pier was destroyed by a mysterious fire. The Million Dollar Pier, however, is still standing (more or less) across from Caesar’s Casino Hotel. 

After The Music Master left Atlantic City, it played a brief engagement in Philadelphia, where bookers were able to quote the play’s early reviews: 

“A triumph! It was a Belasco performance in every sense of the word.” 

Belasco returned to Atlantic City in 1909 - this time to the Savoy Theatre on the Boardwalk with Is Matrimony A Failure?  While the play was not strictly a failure, its four month run on Broadway proved it was no Music Master!  But that’s another blog.

[paisleypat]

Strictly Paisley! Many thanks to Drew Moir for taking a photo of BBC Strictly Come Dancing’s favourite male professionals, Ian Waite and Vincent Simone. They're holding Paisley Tango fans, which have a unique paisley pattern (pic 2) that I designed for Drew who runs Paisley Tango (tango dancing club in Paisley, Scotland). Ian and White are touring the UK in their new show “The Ballroom Boys”. (at Beacon Arts Centre) https://www.instagram.com/p/CVe3arko6c1/?utm_medium=tumblr

[songwriternews]

New Post has been published on SONGWRITER NEWS

New Post has been published on https://songwriternews.co.uk/2020/11/how-to-blow-your-sax-embouchure-beginner-saxophone-lesson-3/

How To Blow Your Sax (Embouchure). Beginner Saxophone Lesson #3

***NEW!! Free PDF Cheatsheet for the lesson!*** click here→https://www.getyoursaxtogether.com/howtoblow

►►Watch my free one hour SAXOPHONE SUCCESS MASTERCLASS→https://www.getyoursaxtogether.com/masterclass

It’s my pleasure to provide all the lessons on this channel for FREE, but (if you feel like it) you can say “hi” and buy me a coffee here… https://www.buymeacoffee.com/GetYourSaxTogether

For complete beginners – covering how to blow your saxophone. This third part of my Complete Beginners Series covers what you need to know about the way you have your lips, mouth, teeth and throat (your “Embouchure”) to get a great sax sound!

0:01 – intro and theme music 1:52 – what does embouchure mean 2:05 – different types of embouchure 2:09 – John Coltrane’s embouchure 2:29 – Michael Brecker’s embouchure 2:51 – what strength reed to use 3:02 – mouthpiece patches 3:21 – 1-2-3 method for saxophone embouchure 3:24 – (1) where to put your top teeth 3:40 – (2) your bottom lip 3:54 – (3) the rest of your mouth 4:11 – recap 4:32 – demo 4:40 – how to blow 4:42 – puffing your cheeks – DON’T! 4:55 – secret pro tip (open throat) 5:34 – recommended pitches for blowing the neck 7:08 – next week’s lesson 7:28 – sign off

Mouthpiece patches, something like this –

My aim is bring all this accumulated knowledge to you in a fun and informative way every Sunday – as it says on my channel banner, I’m gonna Sax Up Your Sunday!! I also release “Welcome To My World” vlogs – fun and informal footage shot in black and white where you can follow me around my life as a pro musician, see what happens behind the scenes and get to know me a bit better. Warts and all!!! lol If you want to see those vlogs check out my “Vlogs – welcome to my world as a pro saxophonist in the uk!” Playlist here…

If you’re a complete beginner your first stop is my “Beginner Series – EVERYTHING you need to know to blow sax and read music!” Playlist, which covers putting the instrument together from scratch, how to blow your first notes and how to start reading music…

To find all those wicked sax tunes you always wanted to play check out my “Sax Hall Of Fame” Playlist, where I break down those well known sax classics into easy phrases with fingering diagrams and downloadable PDFs. You’ll learn them EXACTLY as they were played – there’s no more accurate lesson on the internet, I promise you…

A bit about me…

I’ve been a professional saxophonist and woodwind player, based in the UK, for over 25 years now and I’ve performed with Chaka Khan, The X-Factor Big Band, Robbie Williams, Incognito, JTQ, The Ronnie Scott’s Big Band, Wet Wet Wet, The BBC Big Band, Frankie Valli And The Four Seasons, The Four Tops, The Temptations, as well as doing West End Musicals Jersey Boys (for 9 years!), Book Of Mormon, Motown The Musical, Dreamgirls, 42nd Street, Kinky Boots, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Tina The Musical, Strictly Ballroom plus countless more touring, jazz gigs, teaching, arranging, composition and studio productions all round the world from Japan, Korea and Indonesia to the USA, Brazil, Russia and all over Europe!

I’m happily married and live in Chelmsford (Essex) in the UK with two gorgeous kids and I balance my time between gigging, arranging, teaching, producing content for this channel and obsessing over Game Of Thrones! lol

Please also check out my website and sign up to be kept informed of future excitements! https://www.getyoursaxtogether.com

**********************************************************

***My set ups***

Saxes –

Soprano Keilwerth SX90 II curved crook Selmer C** ebonite mouthpiece

Alto Selmer mkVI Jody Jazz HR 8M mouthpiece

Tenor Selmer mkVI “USA Florida” metal Otto Link 8

Bari Yamaha 32 Jody Jazz 8 metal mouthpiece Yanagisawa 6 ebonite mouthpiece

Reeds Mostly Java Red

Sling BG Harness

Production –

Shot with Mirrorless Fujifilm X-T100 Mic – Rode VideoMicPro Lens – Fujifilm XF 18mm f2.0 Photomaster Softbox lighting kit 1 x Viltrox 162 LED light panel Edited on Final Cut Pro X MacBook Air 11” HP Quad 27” Display

Any Questions – hit me up!!! #getyoursaxtogether #onlinesaxlessons #saxtechnique source

[telemilka]

Big: The Musical

About the show

BIG the Musical follows the journey of twelve-year-old Josh Baskin. Josh hates being little, and all of that changes one night at the carnival. A mysterious Zoltar machine grants Josh’s wish to be big, and Josh becomes an adult! Alone in New York, and trapped in an adult’s body, Josh tries to navigate in a grown-up world where everything is work with no play. Despite trying his hardest, Josh can’t help being himself – maybe he could teach the adults a thing or two…

Jay McGuinness reprises his role as Josh in this production. McGuinness is best known for being a member boy band The Wanted. In 2015, he won the television show Strictly Come Dancing, showing the nation his ballroom dancing skills. Most recently, McGuinness performed in Rip It Up – The 60s alongside Harry Judd, Aston Merrygold, and Louis Smith. The show toured the UK before playing at the Garrick Theatre in London’s West End for four months.

McGuinness is joined by Wendi Peters as Mrs Baskin, Kimberley Walsh as Susan Lawrence and Matthew Kelly as George MacMillan.

The show features songs by David Shire and Richard Maltby. Shire has created songs for a range of films and musicals, including parts of Saturday Night Fever. Maltby has penned lyrics for the likes of Miss Saigon and Ain’t Misbehavin’. The musical’s book comes from John Weidman, who has collaborated with Wicked creator Stephen Schwartz on Assassins as well as written the book for Anything Goes. Direction and choreography comes from Morgan Young (Elf the Musical).

Recommended for

Anyone who loved the original film BIG or has enjoyed recent film-to-musical adaptations such as Heathers. This show is family-friendly and for the big kid in all of us . It will certainly have you laughing your socks off!

[centrestagereviews]

Actor of the Week: Courtney May Briggs

Courtney’s theatre credits include: Emily Waters/ Cover Fran (Strictly Ballroom – West Yorkshire Playhouse/ Princess of Wales Theatre), Ensemble/ Cover Carla (In the Heights – Southwark Playhouse/ King’s Cross Theatre), Ensemble/ Cover Joice Heth (Barnum – No 1 UK Tour), Kiss Me, Kate (BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall), Vocalist for Kerry Ellis Live (London Palladium) and Tiger Lily (Peter Pam…

[thecourtneychronicles]

“RuPaul’s Drag Race star Courtney Act is helping break down gender barriers on the Australian version of Strictly Come Dancing, which she’s set to compete in with a male professional partner.

The drag artist – real name Shane Janek – was revealed as a contestant on the upcoming series of Dancing With The Stars on Wednesday.

Courtney announced the news on Instagram, posting a picture of herself with her new dance partner Joshua Keefe.

Revealing she will be performing as her drag alter-ego, she wrote: “Imma be twinkling round the floor on Dancing With The Stars in Australia!!! Can’t wait to do all the sexy dances and wear all the pretty dresses.”

She also referenced her infamous fall on the way into the Celebrity Big Brother house last year, adding: “Hopefully no wardrobe malfunctions this time.”

The Australian version of the show is the latest around the world to embrace same-sex partnerships, as conversation continues on the issue here in the UK.

So far, Strictly bosses have decided to stick with what they have repeatedly called the “traditional ballroom format” of male and female pairs.

This is despite many Strictly stars – including judge Craig Revel Horwood and professional dancer Ajlaz Skorjanec – calling for the show to embrace the change and feature same-sex pairs.

Courtney will be joined on Dancing With The Stars by the half-sister of former Neighbours star Holly Valance, Olympia. Olympia previously followed in her sibling’s footsteps by starring on the Aussie soap, playing Paige Smith from 2014 to 2018.

It has been a busy year for Courtney, as fresh from winning the UK version of Celebrity Big Brother last year, she toured the country with her own show, before hosting E! series The Bi Life and landing her own Channel 4 festive special.”

Huffington Post article about Courtney’s participation on Dancing with the Stars - January 30, 2019

[mcguinessdaily]

Jay McGuiness to Rip It Up in 1950s-themed stage show

Strictly Come Dancing star Natalie Lowe has announced she will be touring with two of the show's former celebrity champions now she has left the competition.

Dancer Lowe, 36, recently said she would retire from the BBC contest, which she first joined in 2009, and has now revealed she will star in a stage show with Jay McGuiness and Louis Smith.

Rip It Up will see the trio swing, bop, jitterbug, lindy hop, jive and ballroom to the sounds of the 1950s along with a cast of dancers.

Lowe told the Press Association: "To be able to work with these two incredible Strictly champions and choreograph routines with them to the music from music's greatest decade is something we are all very excited to be working on.

"Together, we will dance through some of the most fantastic songs ever created."

Rip It Up will also feature Radio 2's Leo Green and his 1950s band, playing hits including La Bamba, Reet Petite, Unchained Melody, Mambo Italiano, Hound Dog, Shout and Magic Moments.

Former The Wanted singer McGuiness won Strictly Come Dancing in 2015 with partner Aliona Vilani, wowing the public with their Pulp Fiction-inspired jive.

He told the Press Association: "To perform with Radio Two's Leo Green and his band, as well as share the stage with Natalie and Louis and such a talented cast of singers and dancers, should be quite an experience.

"We have some great ideas and are looking forward to bringing them to the theatres around the country, singing and dancing to some of the greatest songs from one of the greatest decades."

Olympic gymnast Smith won Strictly's glitterball trophy in 2012 with partner Flavia Cacace.

He said: "A lot of people think of the music of the 50s as just rock 'n' roll.

"Whilst this was the decade that brought us Elvis, Buddy Holly, The Everly Brothers, Little Richard and more, we will also be celebrating the music of Sinatra, Nat King Cole and all the beautiful vocal harmony groups from that special decade."

Rip It Up takes in 42 dates around the UK in September and October, with tickets going on sale on May 12.

Source

[gossipdepartement]

Kevin Clifton on what ex co-star Craig Revel Horwood really thought of him: 'Very rare'

Kevin Clifton on what ex co-star Craig Revel Horwood really thought of him: ‘Very rare’

Former Strictly Come Dancing professional Kevin Clifton, 38, recently announced he was leaving the BBC show after seven years. The Latin champion has since revealed he will be working alongside Craig Revel Horwood, 55, again during the musical tour of Strictly Ballroom UK.

Speaking on his self-titled podcast, The Kevin Clifton Show, the dancer admitted he has always tried to “impress” Craig.

Bu…

[girlonfilms]

Strictly Ballroom The Musical heads out on UK tour

Strictly Ballroom The Musical heads out on UK tour

A new theatre production of Strictly Ballroom The Musical will tour the UK next year, directed by Strictly Come Dancing judge Craig Revel Horwood.

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