The Mavis Turner Tappers - in Croydon

And so it came to pass that I found myself in the salubrious surroundings of Croydon last night - a place so soulless that it makes Birmingham seem like Paris in comparison... What on earth could have drawn us to travel via the dreadful Thameslink to the grey concrete hell-hole that dubs itself "London's Third City" (if London had been rebuilt by Novosibirsk's municipal architect, that is) on a sultry Friday evening?

Why, the lovely Anita Harris, of course!

When our friend Maria suggested going along to see the touring production of Stepping Out (a play based on the 1991 film that starred Liza Minnelli and Julie Walters), how could I resist? The Madam unfortunately had to work, but John-John and I decided it was an absolute must-see, even if it was at the Fairfield Halls! And we were definitely in for a treat...

Set almost entirely in the confines of a shabby church hall rehearsal room, the story (or stories) revolves around the aspirations and banter of a group of misfits who are brought together every week for a tap class. Led by their marvellously brittle teacher Mavis (played to perfection by Lucy Williamson stepping into the indomitable shoes of Liza, who played the part in the movie), the ensemble of no-hopers are cajoled, encouraged and cosseted into varying degrees of rhythmic movement.

In the process the hidden secrets, dashed ambitions, relationship problems and nervous tics of the group come to the fore, bit by bit. It all sounds very grim, but actually the badinage between the characters is hilarious - I described it as like Dinnerladies with tap shoes!



It is a little misleading in the publicity to assume that Anita Harris (playing the cleaning-obsessed Vera, Julie Walters' part in the film) or the token male Brian Capron (aka Corrie's serial killer Richard Hillman) are actually the lead characters in the production, as the whole cast is absolutely superb - from the enormous Rose to the mousy Andy, the squeaky Dorothy to the grumpy pianist Mrs Fraser.

Together they made what could sometimes seem like a slightly strained set of stereotypes into a truly believable and likeable group of characters. The audience really warmed to these people, and by the end we were whooping with joy at the way their efforts and struggles all come together for the dreaded charity show performance as the "Mavis Turner Tappers".

This was a truly uplifting, funny and delightful show - and I really hope someone snaps it up for the West End!

A review in the Stage

And here is the trailer for the classic movie version:

Stepping Out movie trailer

Fab.