House of Jojo

Wales Millennium Centre

As a newcomer to Johannes Radebe but knowing he had been on Strictly! I knew to expect lots of cheesy dance routines, impeccably delivered of course, and lots of flashing smiles and glitter.

Yes, the House of Jojo is all of that and is a truly delightful experience, which as the dancer promised was as Camp as Christmas from start to finish.

There were as many costume changes as he could fit in, genuinely top-notch performances by 12 dancers, who at times drew my attention more than the main man!

The first part was a back to my roots African tribal dances fantasy for the South African, which while probably not totally authentic was certainly lively and entertaining. In one of the many delightful chatting sessions with the audience, seemingly avid fans to a woman (and some men), Johannes, introduced some of his own choreography. As with everything he did, the creator of the show, there was this appealing mixture of bursting with pride, genuine gratitude to those who have supported him, and then cheeky little boy sassiness!

We had to have some mention of what a horrible world we live in and let’s all make a change sort of thing plus gender challenging supportive words, but we had rally come for the wiggling and twirling, fancy footwork and once the party got going, more and more lavish and outrageous costumes. His singers were splendid and, like the dancers, were as memorable as Johannes himself – but then that may well be because I am not one of the obviously legions of fans.

He thrilled the very excited capacity audience at Wales Millennium Centre by telling them he will be back for a week next year in the show Kinky Boots.

While the end section was very much as Camp as Christmas, other sections were lithe and well-choreographed dance routines that would grace any West End musical and, of course, Strictly!

Kinky Boots is at Wales Millennium Centre March 18-22, 2025

Sam Farrant