The Chronicle (South Tyneside and Durham)
BABATUNDE SEEKS NEW COMIC TALENT
BILLY ELLIOT’S ADAM COOPER TELLS MARION MCMULLEN ABOUT HIS LOVE OF MUSICALS AS HE TAKES HIT SHOW A CHORUS LINE ON TOUR
What is one of your favourite stage parts?
I think Guys And Dolls. It was the first musical I did and I didn’t get the part because I was a dancer, but because I could act and sing. I played Sky Masterson who doesn’t really dance at all.
The great Patrick Swayze was in the production and he was such a lovely, charming man. He had such a great aura on stage and it was thrilling to work with him.
Are you now looking forward to taking A Chorus Line on tour? It was incredibly exciting when we first did it two-and-a-half years ago in Leicester. We had such a good time with it and it felt like a really special, unique version of the show. We had a five-week run and now I have the chance to come back again and take it on tour. It’s really exciting.
What makes this show so special is the cast and what they bring to it. Eight of the original cast members are back and everyone else is new and they bring their own personalities to the show.
Carly (Carly Mercedes Dyer) is also back as Cassie and she is such a powerful singer and actress. She is a real powerhouse and it is lovely to perform with her again.
What do you enjoy about playing the domineering director-choreographer Zak? (Laughs) I don’t have to dance so much. I’m not hoofing around. I was doing Singin’ In The Rain for a long time. I did something like 700 shows and I loved every second of it. Mind you, I think I am permanently waterlogged now. There was a lot of rain in the show.
There’s only so long you can dance on stage for, but A Chorus Line is just glorious.
It is based on the real stories of dancers who are hoping to make the big time and it shows the whole audition process. And then there are those great songs like What I Did For Love, I Hope I Get It and One.
You’re about to turn 53. Do you still work out every day?
I’ve been doing dance for so long it is second nature. I think I have performed all over the world, apart from Australia and Africa, and I still do something every day. It’s my life.
I’m very bad at sitting around and doing nothing. I’m always doing something physical, maybe some yoga or something like that, otherwise the day is not complete. I can’t sit still. (Laughs) I’m always up and jumping around.
Sitting on my bum all day is not me. Dancing is part of who I am.
What else do you have lined up?
I always enjoy a challenge. I did a play in Japan and had to speak Japanese.
I would say I now spend half my time as a choreographer and director and half as a performer and I love wearing the different hats.
I’ve been working a lot in Munich for the last 10 years as well, and will be directing Pirates Of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan there later this year and La Cage aux Folles in the new year.
It’s going to be an exciting time.
■ Visit achoruslinetour.com for tour dates and ticket details.
Award-winning comedian, actor, podcaster and writer Babatunde Aléshé, right, is the head judge to find 2024’s winner of the BBC New Comedy Awards.
He says: “This prestigious competition has seen a raft of amazing comics taking part over the years. I can’t wait to see what brand-new talent the UK has to offer this year.”
Entries can be submitted until midnight on June 30. Details can be found at bbc.co.uk/ newcomedyawards
Dancing On Ice winner and former X Factor singer Jake Quickenden, left, will be touring the UK next year in Rita,
Sue & Bob Too! He says: “Andrea Dunbar’s play is a classic and I can’t wait to play Bob.”
The cast also includes Hollyoaks’ Jessica Ellis, Shameless and Coronation Street actor Warren Donnelly and Britain’s Got Talent’s Siobhan Phillips. The tour runs from February 4. Visit rsbtuktour.com for ticket bookings.