JOHN Partridge has worn many hats over the course of his 30-year career, from training as a classical ballet dancer to cooking in the MasterChef kitchen.
“My mum used to say I was alright at a lot of things and she’s kind of right,” he laughs as we sit down to chat in Belfast’s Cabaret Supper Club – the setting for his next venture.
“I’ve always tried to be diverse – I will have a go at anything.”
Indeed, he will, as in January he will be taking his solo show Dancing Man on the road.
“People know me for lots of different things whether that’s playing Christian Clarke on EastEnders or that ‘David’s dead’ meme that went viral or for cooking on TV,” he explains.
“But what a lot of people don’t know is that I have a theatrical background - I just finished a run of Everybody’s Talking About Jamie earlier this year and that was my 21st West End production.
“So Dancing Man is an opportunity to highlight that but also role up all these past lives and put them in one place.”
Amongst the dazzling dance routines and catchy musical numbers that you’d expect from someone who has appeared in 21 West End shows, Dancing Man will also explore John’s relationship with his parents and how they were instrumental in helping to forge his career.
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“It is a show about heritage, I do talk about my dad and my mum, and their experience of parenting a very unruly young boy who didn’t understand what ‘no’ meant.
“And it’s a celebration of that and a love letter to my family and to where I began.”
Although John is keen to point that his story is “not unique.”
“It’s a very honest show and I do talk about things I think everyone can relate to on some level.
“My dad died when I was 17 and my mum passed away in 2017 which was really painful and difficult for me and I do discuss that during different parts of the show.
“At its core I think it’s really about accepting the harder parts of life which is something everyone has to do.
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“We all know what it’s like to love and lose, we all know what it’s like to say goodbye to people we love, we all know what it’s like to be at rock bottom and have to find a way out of that.”
However, despite the serious notes scattered throughout the production John hopes it will be an uplifting experience and give audiences an escape from what is “often a gloomy reality.”
“They say happiness is a state of mind but when you can’t pay your mortgage and there’s no food in the fridge it can be really hard to see any kind of positives,” he explains.
“So, if I can transport people – even if it’s just for a little while and make them laugh, sing and just forget then I think that’s worth doing.”
It is for this reason that John believes audience participation is an “integral part of the show”.
“There is a structure to it– I’ve got bullet points and moments I need to hit,” he laughs.
“But how I get there is really down to whoever is in the room because they guide it - but I know, Belfast isn’t going to let me down.”
Looking ahead to his dates in both Belfast and Dublin John believes it will be a “particularly poignant experience” as his mum was from Tipperary.
“My dad’s Scottish and my mum’s Irish and audiences in Glasgow and Belfast in particular are very similar.
“They’re really supportive audiences but they also really listen - they’re with you – they’re massively emotional and emphatic audiences and that’s what I love about coming here.
“But it’s particularly special to come back with a show that is so personal to me.
“Plus, I’m an absolute sucker for an Irish accent,” he says with a cheeky grin.
Although John is known for not taking himself too seriously he admits he had some “serious nerves” about putting on such an honest production.
“I’ve never done a solo show in this way,” he confesses.
“Because I just wasn’t able to look back enough – I didn’t want to – I needed time to grow.
“I spent a long time trying to run away from that little boy who had that dream and I wasn’t even sure why I was running.
“It’s only when you stop that you can ask yourself those sorts of questions and I’m done with running like that now and it feels really good.
“So, I suppose in a way, that means I’m finally all grown up.”
He also had reservations about touring in January but, ever the showman, he has the perfect sales pitch.
“I am the perfect stocking filler,” John enthuses.
“So, get your mum or granny or boyfriend or your lover or your au pair or your nanny - whoever it is - to buy those tickets for Christmas, otherwise I’m going to be knocking on doors.
“It’s going to be a night of love, laughter and dancing – when you come and see this show I am going to be your theatre Viagra.”
Catch John Partridge in Belfast’s Cabaret Supper Club on January 23 and 24 or The Sugar Club in Dublin on January 25. CabaretBelfast.com & Ticketmaster.ie
