Burn The Floor - 4th September 2010

This is longer than my usual drabble but I don't want to forget the wonderful occasion

Picture the scene; a warm, sunny afternoon, a Thames-side path at low tide, a chic wedding reception being hosted in a converted wharf side bar, and a smartly dressed 7 year old boy. Over the muted conversational hum, a sweetly clear voice asks   “Daddy? Why is that lady standing on a seaweedy pipe and hanging onto a bit of rusty old chain?“
And apart from a slight question mark over the inclusion of an appropriate adjective, (I would perhaps have used insane), I found myself asking the same question but mentally adding  “when she could be meeting Ali Bastian and Brian Fortuna at the stage door of the Shaftesbury Theatre instead”  For yes, that insane woman was me.  Now I know you are all asking yourselves what on earth this has to do with the final UK performance of Burn the Floor but bear with me.  I will get there.  Eventually
I’m sure that many women, faced with a day to themselves in London would think; “shopping” and head off to the consumerist temples of Oxford or Regent Street armed with fantastic plastic and an empty Harvey Nicks carrier bag purchased on ebay for £10.00.  (What is all that about?)  But not me. I have an addiction which can be summarised as a form of treasure hunting using a hand held satnav.  Usually our hunting grounds are the hills and dales of northern England so the chance to factor in a spot of urban geocaching before the BTF show was a chance not to be missed.  Consequently I’d planned my visit  to include maximum opportunities for furtling around grubby drain pipes in places of historic interest to find magnetic key safes.  (Well, it takes all sorts and let’s not forget that diversity is the TAFFs watchword).
Thus, it was a highly excited Glistener who ejected from the overnight bus at Victoria Coach station at 6am clutching her rucksack, GPSr and BTF banner!  Now luckily for me (and unlike Brian), I’m a morning person so arriving in London at the crack of dawn on a Saturday offered lots of exciting possibilities.  Geocaching takes you to all sorts of interesting and unusual places (remind me to tell you one day about my unscheduled tour of the Metropolitan Mounted Police Stables in Old Scotland Yard – amazing) so I was able to find a number of elusive geocaches hidden in public places.  These are normally too difficult to seek during the working day without causing a full scale security alert.  It also meant that the park and pavement cafes were less crowded so I’d time to sit and people watch while enjoying a coffee without feeling pressured to be somewhere else.  London is such an interesting, historic and culturally rich city, that despite being something of a country bumpkin, I have to agree with Samuel Johnson that “when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life”
But enough philosophising.  Let’s return to the Thames and my precarious position 5ft up on an old pipe reaching out for a magnetised film canister stuck to a mooring ring some distance above the high water line of the river.  Let me be clear; I hadn’t intended to find this cache during this visit  but the inaudible siren call of the cache -  “find me, find meeee” was so compelling, I was drawn to it inexorably like a moth to a flame. And that was my downfall (although thankfully not literally).  By the time I’d finished explaining my abnormal antics to the increasingly enthusiastic little boy and his father, rather too much time had elapsed for me to change my clothes, travel to the theatre and still be at the stage door for post matinee meets and greets. So, I have only myself to blame for missing the opportunity to meet Brian and Ali.  But maybe that was just as well.  I’m sure neither of them would have appreciated an impromptu Thames mud pack in advance of their final performance.  With a little less urgency, I headed for a suitable coffee shop, changed out of my slime covered trousers into clean clothes and wandered along to the theatre.
Now remembering the “curious incident of the aquarium in the night-time” from the March show at Blackpool Tower, I made sure I was in situ and highly visible in the theatre foyer well before show time. This gave me plenty of time to approach directly, several innocent non -TAFFs who were suitably bewildered at my advances.
“Am I a TAFF?  No, sorry. I’m from Dorset but my Uncle lived in Wales”
“Did you say Fortunas Fantastic?  Yes, I’m sure the show will be fantastic. Fortunately, I’m not sitting near you!”
So, it was with a little relief that I eventually spied several familiar faces across the lobby as the TAFFS began to arrive.  There was the usual chaos as people met and greeted each other but gradually, we were herded into the designated bar for pre-show drinks.  I didn’t mingle too much as it was evident that lots of people knew each other and wanted to catch up but in any event, I’m quite content people watching.   It was apparent from the excitement levels in the room that the evening was going to a roller coaster of emotions and I couldn’t wait for the show to begin.
We made our way into the delightfully elaborate Victorian auditorium to take our seats with a few minutes to wait before curtain rise so I was able to savour the expectant atmosphere that all theatres seem to radiate.  The show opened with an amusing little interaction between a couple of the cast and the audience, reminding us that  mobile phones and cameras were not permitted and then we danced into the routines.  Now I’m not given generally to fanciful musings but I can honestly say that when Ali and Brian came onto the stage, I felt a palpable wall of noise, emotion and something that I can only describe as  “positivity” sweep across the theatre from the TAs and FFs to the stage.  I’d like to think that all the dancers, musicians and singers on the stage felt the power and were energised by it for all their performances were simply electrifying.  The show was non stop with changes in tempo, music, costumes and dance styles.  I think it fair to say that the stage was smokin’ for the whole night.  Brian shone among the professional dancers and novice Ali more than held her own in the routines she performed in.  The finale was sensational and to see and hear the whole theatre standing up on their feet around me, cheering and applauding as the curtain rose and fell was something I’ll not forget for a long time.  I can only imagine the high that Brian, Ali and the rest of the company must have experienced as I felt as if I could have floated out of the theatre, despite my rucksack!
After the show was over, all too soon, I might add, I went round to the side door as the TAFFs had some gifts to give Brian’s mum, including a BTF banner I’d made.  Mrs Fortuna seemed to be very pleased with them and came across as a gracious, lovely lady. Sadly, I wasn’t able to stop to meet Brian and Ali as that seductive temptress, the overnight coach back home, was luring me back to Victoria so I slipped away unnoticed into the night.
There will be those of you thinking that this report actually has very little to do with BTF, Brian or Ali and you are entirely correct.  There is other, so much better reportage out there that provides all the essential detail on the stage performance (amazing), the costumes (stunning)), the music (I wish I could sing or play half as well) and our stars of the show (attractive, talented, affectionate and emotional) that I feel I can add little value to that.  But I wanted to share with you my wonderful, personal experience in my own way so you will have to excuse my eccentricities.  It was a day and night to remember and for the opportunity to be part of it, I’m so very, very grateful.