Strictly Come Dancing has become a Saturday night institution and now the show’s biggest stars are heading to Dublin with their own live extravaganza. Alan Corr talks to Vincent Simone who stars with lifelong partner Flavia Cacace in Midnight Tango
Strictly Come Dancing has sashayed and rumba-ed its way into the hearts of Ireland and the UK viewers over the past seven years. Celebs come and go, judges are hissed, booed or adored but the real stars of this show are Flavia Simone and Vincent Simone, the former world champion hoofers who have danced their way to stardom on primetime TV.
And now they’re coming to Dublin with their own show, Midnight Tango, a passionate tale of love and rivalry and more than a few laughs set in a late-night bar in downtown Buenos Aires. Vincent plays a handsome young man who turns up at the bar and naturally falls for Flavia’s character, Sophia.
“There are loads of things going on and they feel like they have to come back a second time to catch everything,” says Vincent who, like Flavia, is 31. “We also have five amazing couples from Argentina as well who are amazing at tango and a live band and the show is worth seeing for them alone.”
The show, produced by Strictly stalwart Arlene Phillips, has already been a huge hit in London where it sold 160,000 tickets and made £4 million at the box office. It’s clear that Strictly and the tango has become irresistible for us rather impassionate Northern Europeans. “Me and Flavia were the first to dance tango on TV and we became the face of Argentine tango and people just fell in love with this dance,” says Vincent. “They find it passionate and you can tell a story with dance. It’s a beautiful shape of dance.”
Flavia and Vincent
Vincent, who is from a big Italian family from Naples and rose through the ranks of local competitions, is not shy and Strictly has made him a star. His press biog describes as a “loveable Italian who wants the whole world to love him.” And you won’t get any argument from him.
“It is all true! I’ve always been a bit of a star since I was in Italy. When I was 11 years old I became Italian champion and we has thousands of people coming to my parent’s dance school and they respect me and I was only a boy. When I came to England I managed to win loads of prizes and then going on TV I was known by millions of people!”
He met Flavia after moving to the UK when he was 17 and she was 16 and they make quite a couple but are there ever any rows? “Not really and that’s the special thing about it. We understand each other and the fact that we’ve been dancing together for so long comes across and that’s why we’re successful. We’re been through a lot. Yes, sometimes she is, how do you say it? Rolling her eyes at me.”
They’ve met quite a lot of hoofing celebrities over the seven seasons and Vincent thinks hard when I ask him does he have any favourites. “I’ve been quite lucky. I had Stephanie Beacham and she was quite a woman! I don’t think I’ll be ever scared of another woman after meeting her. Rachel Stevens was wonderful! Natalie Cassidy was the best fun of all though.
"As a person she was so funny. I also had the beautiful, elegant Felicity Kendall, so talented and with beautiful legs! Edwina Curry was so intelligent. People expect her to be awful on the dance floor and unfortunately, she was.”
Vincent’s partner, Susan, is from Derry and they have a two-year-old son, Luca. They met in London and the thing that caught Vincent’s attention was her accent. “I never heard that accent before but she has a nice and sweet and soft Irish accent and obviously she’s stunning, dark woman and I’m attracted by that. He has a mix of Italian and Irish accent.”
Ever the joker, he says that the success of Midnight Tango is down to all the ladies coming to see him. “Yes, we all know that. I’m a miracle of nature. I am one thing to see before you die!”
Somewhere Flavia is rolling her eyes again.
Alan Corr
Midnight Tango is at An Bord Gáis Theatre, Dublin from June 5 – 9
