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Six
muscle-stacked builders take to the stage, feet all of a flutter
as they tap out elaborate dance routines usually reserved for effete
breadsticks in dinner dress.
 Stomping
amidst an industrial backdrop of scaffolding, steel sheeting and
moveable platforms this unlikely crew of wow-heeled wonder hunks
put the boot into traditional expectations of what a dance performance
should be.
Instead
of classical strings and lycra clad lunchboxes, they deliver 75
minutes of frenetic, eye-popping exertion in which every available
surface is utilised - including the ceiling!
Originating
in a steel town north of Sydney, Australia, Tap Dogs is the brain
child of Dein Perry who first sketched out the premise of the show
from his garage. After working as both an industrial machinist and
a dancer in stage musicals, Perry decided to call upon his hometown
pals and set about creating what has become an international touring
sensation.
You
may already have seen them in a dance segment between programmes
on the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½, and the lads took part in the opening ceremony of the
2000 Olympic Games when they were witnessed by 3.4 billion viewers
across the globe.
Dancer
Joshua Cyr, originally from Canada, spoke with us prior to the Tap
Dog’s Liverpool dates later this month..
| Were
you aware of the show before having joined the cast? |
| "Yes,
it was definitely one of the shows that I was dancing for, that
I wanted to do in my life. It so happened that I was in Germany,
at the World Tap Championships as an amateur and couldn’t get
a flight home to Vancouver, Canada, where I’m from. I’d been
training in Buffalo New York so I went there instead. The Tap
Dogs were on, I saw the show and the next day I had an audition.
Three days later I joined them on tour and I’ve been doing it
ever since!" |
| Do
you have a favourite routine within the show? |
| "I
do I guess, it would be near the end, on the scaffolding. It
starts with red trucks that split with jagged teeth so if you
fell down there you could really hurt yourself, and we’re going
back and forth, jumping across. Then that goes away, and ropes
pull up metal ramps, so you gotta weave in and out of the ropes
and not fall off. Then they get pulled up and on the underside
is ladders so we get a good groove going of six blokes going
up and down ladders. We build all the scaffolding ourselves
and all six of us are out there just pounding it as hard as
we can so that it looks like as though its gonna fall down.
Plus we know we’re almost done at that point, so we’re giving
everything we have left." |
| Is
there any opportunity to improvise? |
| "Absolutely.
Although the choreography stays the same, especially for the
ensemble numbers, there are so many solo spots for every character
in the show that they actually encourage you to create your
own style and new steps so you don’t get bored." |
| Do
you get through many pairs of boots during the tour? |
| "We
like our boots, so we like to hang on to them. We could get
new pairs but we just get them re-soled. When the bottoms are
shot we replace the leather and re-tap them, because nobody
likes breaking in a new pair of boots!" |
| Because
of the nature of the set, is there an element of danger involved? |
| "It’s
a very dangerous show. Is has a very rough edge. The apparatus
is very dangerous looking and it is, to be on. We’re shifting
it sideways, on tilts, backwards, any which way. But you’re
going to be safe as long as you keep your head on. If you lost
your concentration and let the stage take advantage of you then
it’s going to. But on the other hand you can’t pussyfoot around,
and that’s what it’s all about." |
| Would
you agree that the show has a slightly raunchy spin to it? |
| "It
definitely has sex appeal to it but that comes after everything
else. I think and hope that the people can appreciate what hard
work is going into the show from the very beginning. Because
it’s non-stop, no intermission and you just go go go, and you
can see how wet we get per stage, per number; people falling,
people getting hit, it takes a lot out of you. So I think people
get to see that aspect first and then hopefully take sex appeal
into it afterwards." |
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