Kai Widdrington: A Show That Brought An Evolution To Newark! 😊❤️🎭🕺💃

Hello world! Welcome back to another blog. This week I’m going to talk about a show which I saw at my local theatre which was the Palace Theatre in Newark. This was Evolution, a dance show created by Strictly Come Dancing professional Kai Widdrington. 

This show through dance gives an insight into his story from starting as a young boy to the professional on the most iconic dance show that we all know and love today. 

Kai really was the star of the show. Much like when I went to watch Nikita Kuzmin (which you can view the link for here: https://www.theautisticactress.com/post/watching-a-dancer-at-midnight-kind-of), we got to know him on a personal level. And he was quite funny, mimicking what the husbands/dads were thinking and also doing some brilliant impressions in between of famous Strictly Come Dancing stars. But there were some real depth into his story when he talked about his story, and his dancing was showed it very well. I really felt like I got to know Kai on a personal level as well, and also appreciating the journey he went on to get to where he is today! 

As well as Kai, the rest of the cast did a brilliant job, as he let them had a chance to shine. One of them was his leading lady Rebecca Scott. Her commitment, quirkiness and dedication really shine through, and my favourite moment of her was using her upper body strength in the Paso Doble when Kai took us back to his world championship days, as it may look simple, when in fact I don’t think it was. And I love their chemistry on stage, as their teamwork and each letting them shine really put a smile on my face. 

There was also Luke Miller, who was a brilliant dancer and a great addition to the show. I also discovered about the history between him and Kai, competing against each other but still maintained a strong bond between the two. I also liked how he found the funny side to Kai winning everything, and he was a good sport when taking part in a “mini challenge”. But ultimately he was a great addition in the show, with Grace Cinque-White as his dance partner and also shining on the dance floor when it came to performing their duets. 

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Two more dancers who were part of the cast were Arianna Favaro and Maciej Zieba, and my highlight from these two were their duet in Act 2. I loved their chemistry on screen when performing the routine, as yes it may looked simple when I know full well it wasn’t. They were a perfect addition to the show, and I can’t wait to see what amazing things they get up to in the future. 

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I liked the set up of each dance linking to a different part of his life, all coming under different names. Some of the songs in Act 1 consisted of a Bruno mars medley in “Bruno Mars Inspiration” to open the show, Wonderwall when talking about how he first got into dance in ”Kai’s Intro Into Dance”, and “Little less conversation” when talking about his football hobby and why it helped him with dance on “Football In The Family”. There was also Fly me to the moon when talking about how he flew to Cyprus to meet his dance partner for competitions, and that was one of my favourite songs. Not only because Frank Sinatra was a legend, but because I always pictured this song to be used in Strictly Come Dancing or in a show like “Evolution”, and I’m glad I got to see it for myself in “The Search For A Dance Partner”. And to close the show, he talked about his love for Michael Jackson and how his inspiration got him into dance, and with the medley included “Smooth Criminal”, which was my favourite song from the king of pop, and I’m glad I also got to see someone perform it live! During Act 2, there was also some other brilliant songs that impacted Kai in a positive way. These included a Singing in the rain medley when talking about one of his inspirations growing up, and Saturday night by Elton John when talking about his time on Britain's Got Talent (where how he talked about it was humorous). The cast also got to show their skills during “Touring The World”, and the  numbers they did were beautiful. It also shows the lovely person that Kai was, as yes even though it’s his show, he allowed the other dancers to shine. I also felt his emotion when dancing to “The Man in the mirror” for the end of the show. I could tell he put so much hard work into that number, and I definitely felt it during the performance. Along with the finale where everyone was up on their feet (including me and my Nan), it was definitely the number to end the show on a high. 

I think my only downside was that I didn’t get a chance to meet him in person for a quick picture. I was going to wait at the stage door to see if he’d come and say hello, but I desperately needed the loo, and the last thing I wanted was having a toilet accident whilst getting a picture with him. But I got the last show bag deal as seen below, which was a bonus. And Kai if you and the cast are reading this, just know that me and my Nan enjoyed every minute of it! 

Overall I would give the show a full house of 5 out of 5. It was energetic, fun and it made you want to dance along with him. And incorporating his story into the show and how each song had a different meaning was I think a very nice touch.

And that is it for my review of “Kai Widdrington: Evolution Tour”. Let me know if you’ve seen the show and what you thought of it. You can also click on the two links below to find out when he’s coming to a place near you, his new show “My Revolution” which will premier in 2027, and a link for you to purchase “Evolution” to watch from the comfort of your own home.

Evolution Tour: https://www.kai-tour.com

Watch Kai: https://www.watchkai.com

See you soon for another blog. Until next time…

This is The Autistic Actress signing off :)