Anton Du Beke kicked off his Christmas tour last night (November 24) in Scotland’s newest city in style.
The Strictly Come Dancing judge and professional ballroom and Latin dancer launched his new Christmas show in Dunfermline’s Alhambra Theatre to a packed audience on Sunday night.
Christmas with Anton & Friends began with a live band and singers, and four female dancers dressed in white, festive robes. The stage was decked in full winter glory with Christmas trees that were lit up in a range of colours depending on the song and dance.
With Anton’s sudden appearance on the stage the show got into its full swing with numerous performances throughout. Anton, a jack of all trades, both sang and danced, sometimes even at the same time.
Between him and singer Lance Ellington, a range of Christmas tunes were covered.
With every new song came a costume change for the dancers, from white robes to blue sequins, and one dancer’s green dress even resembled a Christmas tree with its green tassels that flew with every jump and turn.
Anton even brought out a waistcoat of his that once belonged to the showbiz legend, Sir Bruce Forsyth. For Strictly fans, it was a wee treat, but it was also a very touching point in the show.
A running joke from Anton throughout the night was how hard it was for him to keep up with his dancers, but it was truly impressive how much he managed to fit into a two-hour show.
There were so many different sets that the flow of the show continued superbly throughout, and I found that I really didn’t want the break, as I wanted to see the rest of the show immediately.
There was a lot of interaction with the audience throughout the show, both planned and unplanned, that really injected some humour into the night.
Not too long into the programme, Anton stopped to ask a woman what she had in her hand, and a discussion followed about what type of sweetie she had with her.
The confection was passed to Anton, before being passed to another audience member to determine what type of sweet it was. The moment proved to be one that left the audience rolling in their seats.
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Theatregoers were also encouraged to take part in performing the Twelve Days of Christmas alongside Anton and the dancers. Sections of the audience were given dance movements to perform to certain parts of the song.
While some were reluctant to get up and take part, the three ladies in front of me were particularly tickled by the motions made for the eight maids a-milking part of the song.
There is no better way to sum up the show than in Anton’s own words from when he spoke to the Press ahead of the event.
He described it as “Absolute joy! Massively Christmas! Completely Christmas!”
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