Best known for his years as a professional dancer on BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing, Kevin Clifton grew up as a competitive ballroom and Latin dancer. Post-Strictly, he’s been crossing off his dream roles in musicals, like Cosmo Brown in Singin’ in the Rain, and delighting his goth-era younger self by performing in Rock of Ages. Most recently, he’s been touring with 2:22 A Ghost Story with his partner and Strictly co-champion, Stacey Dooley. He is now taking on the role of Tick, and drag alter-ego Mitzi, for the 30th anniversary tour of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.
Were musicals a big part of your life growing up?
Massively, yes! I remember early on, when me and my sister were kids, we went on a trip from Grimsby to London when mum and dad took us to see Cats. It felt like this massive thing. Apart from pantos, I think that was the first big musical theatre show I’d seen. My mind was blown. I couldn’t believe what was happening. The flamboyance of it all, with the cats coming through the audience. I wanted the book of all the lyrics to the songs and the soundtrack. I just wanted more of it. The next one was Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat. It felt like the whole country was talking about it and I remember falling in love with it.
What did you love about musicals?
For me, everything was about ballroom and Latin competitions. My mum and dad were dancers so they were training us when we were kids. My dad would talk a lot about the technique and stuff you have to practice, but he would always drill into us that the most important thing is that you have to affect people emotionally. That’s the whole point of what we do. It’s not just a display of technique. You’ve got to go out and make people excited, or make them want to cry, inspire them or entertain them. His way of demonstrating that to us was to take us to musicals. He’d say, how do you feel when you’re watching this? When you’re carried away with a character and a story or a dance? So that’s always been how I approached my dancing.
You’ve been stacking up musicals over the last few years, with Singin’ in the Rain, Cabaret and Everybody’s Talking About Jamie. What’s the best thing about performing in them?
I love being part of a team. In a competition, you’re against each other. You have to be as good as you can be, and you have to be better than the person next to you. Whereas what I love about musicals and theatre is that you go out as a team to do something together, and you’re helping each other out, playing off each other.
What’s the trick to keeping up momentum and stamina when you’re on tour?
I’ve sort of been on tour my whole life. Once Minnie was born, it got harder. I really miss her and Stacey. But you hear stories about people living rock ‘n’ roll lifestyles on tour. That’s not me! I’m very nerdy about looking after my voice and my energy, so I’m a bit of a hermit. Tea and honey, all that stuff.
Priscilla is a story of resilience against transphobia and homophobia. Why are you proud to be a part of the show?
I think we need it more than ever. There’s so much divisiveness now. I can’t open Instagram without some politician having a go at some minority, whether it’s trans people or immigrants. It does my head in.
On a more personal level, my uncle, who is no longer with us, was gay, and I think it’s something he always struggled with and had demons about. I can’t relate to what it’s like to be judged for your sexuality. But we can all relate to being an outsider.
I grew up in Grimsby and my thing was ballroom dancing. I had to wear bottled fake tan for competitions, and I’d come into school with an orange neck. Everyone knew that while they were all hanging out and playing footie on the weekend, I was doing ballroom dancing with my sister. She was a bit taller than me so I had to have a perm to make myself look taller. I was that kid! It was that feeling of being different and being laughed at. I’ve never been the most confident person. Being on stage is the safe bit. So I relate to Tick when he, as his drag character Mitzi, can be anything he wants to be, whereas he’s got all this conflict when he’s just himself. I’ve always felt for people who feel they’re on the outside. I hate the attack on the trans community. Priscilla is not my story, but if I can play any part in this story, then yeah, I’m proud of that.
For more information, please call the Box Office on 01603 630 000 or visit norwichtheatre.org.
