Strictly behind the curtain

Shooting the live show of Strictly Come Dancing stars Kevin Clifton and Karen Hauer

Hi folks, how was your weekend? Today’s post is very exciting and I can’t wait to share it with you all. Have you ever had a great opportunity that turns out to be way better than you could have thought? A short while ago I had the privilege to shoot the live Kevin and Karen Show in Grimsby. That is Kevin Clifton and Karen Hauer of the TV show Strictly Come Dancing. I’m always most interested in the behind the scene story, so when my friends Nicolette Whitley and Renako McDonald of Alleviate fame, invited me to shoot some back stage photos, the answer was of course yes.

After a couple of hours drive, I met up with Nicolette at the Grimsby Auditorium where the show, “An Evening with Kevin and Karen” was going to be held. On our way to the dressing room I was introduced to Kevin Clifton and his sister Joanne Clifton, both of whom you can watch on TV with the current series of Strictly Come Dancing. Alleviate were sharing their dressing room with the fantastic Irish dance duo, Brosena, the partnership of Erin Trevena  and Tom Brosnan. Since they’re all great friends there were plenty of fun and games.

I hadn’t planned on shooting the live show as I thought it had been taken care of. When Kevin and Karen said they’d be very happy for me to shoot, I quickly changed tack to make the most of this phenomenal opportunity.

Putting your face on

As you know I love a story, often there are many stories happening at the same time, they intersect, merge together, stay intertwined for a while and sometimes head off in a different direction. This evening Nicolette, Erin, Renako and Tom were preparing to tell their own stories on stage, telling stories through dance to the eagerly awaiting audience.

Most people never see the hard work and dedication that goes on behind the scenes of a show like this. There had been a ton of work by Kevin Clifton and Karen Hauer, this show had been put together in a relatively short time. There’s no way it was going to be anything but amazing.

There were plenty of antics in the dressing room. The girls were putting on makeup and helping each other out with their hair. The guys were laughing and joking and wanted to try their hand at being male models and singing Tom Jones hits. I think I still have a short video of this, but i’ll keep it safe, juuuussst in case 😉

Apparently the guys have a serious side, I’m not sure where they’d put it but we did manage to keep them straight faced for a second or two.

 

This was about the time that I was introduced to Susanna Reid, after her success on Strictly Come Dancing she’s absolutely fallen in love with dance. Susanna was going to perform with Kevin as a surprise guest appearance for this one off show. She wore a very flamboyant red dress and looked amazing.  You’ll see how it looked on stage a little later on.

While I was chatting with Susanna the others were called away for a press photo shoot. On their return I snapped a quick shot with them in the hallway, photo bombed by Karen Hauer and Susanna Reid I might add.

 

 Curtain call, 5 minuets

The excitement had risen to an electric buzz of energy around the Auditorium, from both the cast and the audience alike. I wished everyone good luck (break a leg) and headed to the front of stage to scope out some shooting locations. In these situations you must remember that the audience should not be distracted from the performance by anything you do. You’ve got to put your ninja head on, keep to the shadows, out of sight. For goodness sake, don’t use your flash. It’ll bug just about everyone and will be of no use to the picture, lost in the vastness of the venue, aaaaand you’ll look like a right numpty.

No flash, yeah? 😉

I started up high, centred on the stage with a moderately long lens, punched in my camera settings and got myself ready for the first part of the show. Although I’d been to see Flashmob on their tour, which Kevin and Karen, Alleviate and Brosena had all performed, I didn’t have a clue what to expect. This only added to the challenge which I revelled in, I have to say.

The curtains are pulled back

 

After shooting front of stage I moved Around the auditorium, eventually into the stage wings to get a different perspective. As usual there were hives of activity as everyone was getting ready to perform. There’s not much time to fit in costume changes ready for your next performance so it’s all go, go, go. I moved to stage right, there was less commotion giving me space to work without fear of getting in the way.

The dance performances were incredible, everyone was giving their all, the atmosphere had a palatable high energy and joy, which is part of my love for working with dancers. Here’s just a few of the shots.

 

Strictly dance competition

Half way through the show there was a Strictly style dance competition, where members of the public had been given the chance to learn a short routine, with their own dance instructed, to perform on stage. They didn’t hold back,  it was fun to be a part of. The winner of the competition was the lovely Joanne Clifton and her dance partner.

A little closer to the action

In the wings I had the chance to get closer to the action, another opportunity to capture some of the emotions of the dancers during their routines. First up was Alleviate who’s story telling choreography is beautiful and   very emotive to watch.

 

Kevin Clifton and Karen Hauer have such beautiful lines when they dance. I’ve rarely seen two people with a deeper connection when they perform, it’s fantastic to watch. Intensity, power, finesse these two have it all and they’re such lovely people.

An intense moment for Tom Brosnan and Erin Travena during their last number. I believe they’re dancing in a big production of River Dance right now.

As in all things the show must come to an end. I was blessed to be invited to the show to be able to capture some of the outstanding moments. I’d like to thank my friends Nicolette and Renako for inviting me to Grimsby, a big thank you to Kevin and Karen for letting me go free to shoot the show without any restrictions, finally I’d like to thank the rest of the dancers, Aljaz Skorjanec, Janette Manrara, Tom Brosnan and Erin Travena for being such incredible performers and super nice people.

 

These are just a few great shots from the show I’ll be putting an online gallery together for anyone to view and purchase as prints. Please do not copy them from my website or anywhere else, this is how I make my living, please feel free to share a link to this post and come back to view them here and in my portfolio as often as you like.

That’s all from me for today, I hope you’ve enjoyed coming along with me and felt just a little of the feeling of being at this show. It was truly amazing.

Have a great week everyone.

 

🙂