It’s 15 years since street dance crew Diversity beat Susan Boyle to the Britain’s Got Talent crown, and the gang is still going strong. Ashley Banjo is now a prime-time telly face, a judge on Dancing on Ice, and he still leads from the front as choreographer, director and star, greeted by whoops and screams from the crowd. About half the 14-strong group are original members – teenage boys then, now men in their 30s. They are joined by more recent recruits, the youngest being the talented 18-year-old Isaac Akinyemi, and some fierce women too.
This is the start of 60 dates this year, in 27 towns. Never mind the latest chin-scratching developments in contemporary dance, this is the dance that people of all ages buy tickets for, all over the country, looking for a good night out.
The formula in many ways hasn’t changed, Banjo’s signature is punchy unison routines, tight as a military parade, crammed with percussive rhythms and sharp stops, with power moves and acrobatics thrown in (if in doubt, do a backflip). When they go all out, the energy is massive, it’s a rush.
But you can’t keep that up for two hours, and Supernova departs from previous Diversity shows in that it tells a story: troubled pop star crashes his car and ends up in a coma, a handy device with which to set up a whole variety show of numbers inside our hero’s mind, from heartfelt to hallucinatory: a toy box complete with tumbling Power Rangers, a slapstick number, a school classroom, a love story, a redemption. Plus, a cameo from disabled B-Boy Sergio “Checho” Carvajal and narration by Dujon “Scoop” Thomson.
Banjo is really in the business of emotional manipulation, and he uses every device going – video game-style visuals, rain falling from the sky, and music especially, whether for drama, uplift or nostalgia, pushing all the buttons. It’s mostly surface-level stuff, pretty cheesy, but why have I got a lump in my throat, dammit?
Ultimately this a parable about living a good life, holding on to people you love, vanquishing your demons. And they are so darn sincere, as Banjo chats about love, peace and hope. Diversity are very successful at what they do: pure entertainment, with heart.
At Royal & Derngate, Northampton, until 31 January; then touring until 13 April
