Strictly star Oti Mabuse's inspirational life retold in stage show

Strictly star and Dancing on Ice judge, the incomparable Oti Mabuse is hitting with her one woman show, I Am Here.

The literal translation of her Christian name, I am Here is a whistlestop tour of 57 performances across the country. It will be stopping off at the Wolverhampton Grand Theatre on May 29, Stoke's Regent on June 26 and Birmingham Hippodrome on July 3.

Oti and her talented cast of West End singers and dancers will be celebrating the inspirations and motivations that took her from her home in South Africa to the bright lights of TV and theatre in Europe, through the language of dance.

Her larger-than-life personality is warm and welcoming and South African twang is both appealing and infectious. Oti is constantly excited and as it is her first solo tour, she just cannot wait to meet her fans.

“We will be bringing all of the craziness with a live band, live music and amazing dancers” she said.

The show promises to be a visual delight too, with a rainbow of colourful costumes, exceptional lighting effects and very loud music. Oti laughed, “The music will be as loud as I speak!"

Husband Marius is also taking part. Oti said, “The show is really about my life with everyone telling the story through song and dance. From everything we love about the UK, the musicals, the food, the streets, the countryside, then to Germany where we met and started dancing on the German version of Strictly together and then all the way to South Africa and back. He is such a vital part of my life and so it is amazing that I get to share that experience with him.”

She is very proud of her South African roots, which is reflected in the dances and choreography in the show. “Kwaito is a form of South African street dancing which is done with freedom that our nation naturally knows how to do,” she said. “I will also be bringing indigenous traditional dances to the show too.”

Oti is exceptional graceful and yet she has never studied ballet, which was a surprise.

“Ballet is very different to ballroom and latin dance” she said. “Dance is really individual and I don’t think you can just master any style. I have a podcast and on every single episode, I learn a different style of dance. I was terrible at tap! Terrible! But I enjoyed Irish dancing. So, just because you are dancer, it doesn’t mean you can master all styles. Every dance has its own language and you have to put in the work to be able to do it. The body moves how the body moves.”

And speaking of bodies, fitness is clearly not an issue for Oti with performances every night and she does not diet and doesn’t like the word.

“I enjoy salads, but I also enjoy eating burgers and fries too!” she laughed. “I do try and eat lots of protein but not because I worry what I look like; it is because I want my muscles to be fit and strong. I am really an advocate of women looking and feeling their best, whatever shape or size they are. I am not a size two and there are women out there that actually look like me. It is Ok to look and feel normal.

“People need to get out of the idea that you need to look a certain way in order to be accepted and loved. No! We are all individuals in this world and we should all try to love the skin and body we are in. Different bodies are what makes us as a human race beautiful. If we all looked the same and judged people on what they look like, we wouldn’t have the freedom, diversity and beauty that we have, firstly as women and then simply as people.”

For young dancers dreaming of a career like Oti’s she has some advice. “Go for it; find out where you can audition and how you can make connections, but most importantly try and master your craft as best as possible and keep that passion alive.”

We will miss Oti on Strictly this autumn. She is much-loved by audiences and wowed audiences when helping Bill Bailey to win the series in 2020.

But the future looks very busy for the star as she has a whole host of new projects on the go.

First of all is a new dating show which is coming to ITV on April 16. It is her first non-dace related project.

“Romeo and Duet will see singles coming on the show looking for their perfect love match,” she said. “All they have to go on though, is a voice. They stand on a balcony and they will choose their partner from the song they are singing.”

Oti continued, “Then they go on a date, learn a duet and perform it in front of a live audience, who then get to decide which couple has the best chemistry. I’m a lover of love.”

Another appearance on The Masked Dancer is next and then on a more serious note, Oti will also be presenting some documentaries on South Africa with the BBC.

For tickets for I Am Here visit birminghamhippodrome.com or call 08443385000 for the Birmingham date or grandtheatre.co.uk or call 01902 429212 for the Wolverhampton date.