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Hailed as the 21st Century’s answer to Riverdance, the Emerald Storm production by Adam Garcia returns to the West End again, and this time at the Emerald Theatre.
A fusion of Irish dancing, tap dance and urban street dance, the story is brought to audiences by The Boss, played by Tom Ball. A singer in a cabaret show, The Boss punctuates the story as Irish dancers take the stage, The Boss sings, and the immersive theatre happens around you. Watch out for the Mop Boy at this point… then the dancers blend away as tap dancers take the stage and finally singers take on the harmonies as they all take it in turn to bring the dance experience to you.
Every song in this musical extravaganza is accompanied by dance. The theatre is a cabaret-style, two tier theatre with cocktail tables, several bars and sofa seating to sit back and relax. There are actors walking around before and after the show, who then appear on stage as part of the story. Not only does Tom Ball need a shout-out for his talent, but principal dancers Olivia Graydon (Irish dancing) Bayley. Graham (tap) and Matt Walker (Mop Boy) also feature heavily in the dancing as well as the interactivity. There’s lots of stomping, clapping, audience echoing and the main show is book-ended with a house band to open, and audience tap dancing on stage afterwards.
There’s a fabulous energy to the show and lots of smiles – genuine smiles between the performers who all hail from performing schools across the country. The mix of different dance styles is really engaging and is heightened by some fabulous singers and cheeky to-and-fro between the cast and the floor.
It’s an energetic night out with lots of uplifting dance and music, close up and in a cocktail evening style that you don’t get in many places across London nowadays. Magnificent!
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