An Interview With Darren Bennett & Lilia Kopylova

Latin Fever, their debut headline show, is the hottest new ticket in London town, and with dazzling reviews from the harshest dance critics, Strictly Come Dancing’s man-and-wife team gave 50connect readers a fascinating insight into life behind the scenes.

It's playing to audiences for a short run of just a month at the 1,000-seat Peacock Theatre, London until 28th June before switching to Birmingham’s Symphony Hall for a special three-night run from the 6th - 8th August.

The show takes fans on an exhilarating journey around the world of exotic Latin American dance, from the streets of Brazil to the carnivals of Rio and the bullrings of Spain, via smoky bars, dance halls and discotheques.

With the help of four other dance couples, a nine-piece band and two singers, every Latin style is showcased here – the cha-cha-cha, rumba, samba, paso doble, jive, salsa, mambo and the tango.

It's all delivered to the foot- tapping and crowd-pleasing sounds of hits such as Fever, Brazil, Bésame Mucho and Livin' La Vida Loca.

The Interview

How did you both get in to dance?

Darren:  "I got into dance when I was six-years-old because both my parents were professional dancers with a very big dance school in Sheffield."

Lilia:  "I started dancing when I was four because it was part of my ice skating training, and then I changed to ballroom and latin when I was nine."

And how did you meet?

Lilia:  "We met because we were both without dance partners and we were looking for someone new.  At the top level you don't necessary look in your own country you look worldwide and you find the best person to suit you.   

"Most partnerships are international.  We were introduced by Darren's brother Dale and had a try out and it worked out."

So tell us about Latin Fever; what can audiences expect?

Darren:  "We are Latin dancers at heart. We love the rhythms, exploring all the different characterisations of each dance. For us the show is very exciting. The audience can leave all their problems at home and come and enjoy it – as much as we enjoy dancing in it.

"There should be something in it for everyone."

It's described as a journey in dance from Brazil to Spain - do you each have favourite parts of the journey/favourite dance styles?

Lilia: "The swing section is my favourite - it is so long and I am very excited about that one but not to say that I don't like the others. But really I love them all - because we have tried to put them all together with character. It's difficult to pick just one out.  

"The swing number has a great characterization and story to it but we have put all this together ourselves so we're more than happy with every area."

Darren: "For me it would have to be the Samba. Brazil is one of my favourite songs and the arrangement is fantastic and it gives some real energy to kick off the show."

You are both so well known for Strictly - but how big a part of your working life is it?

Darren: The Strictly Come Dancing television show and tour takes up 7 months of our year and when we are not doing Strictly we are still very busy -  we do all sorts of things including our big dance event on Thomson cruises every year.  And now we've got Latin Fever and the Essentially Dance project as well as our every day normal shows and corporate events."

It must have brought you to a wider public - are you recognised in the street - and do you enjoy that?

Darren: "The recognition from Strictly is all very positive -  you do get recognised in the supermarket or gym and the great thing about Strictly is that, it's such a positive show and everything we get from the public is positive feedback.  If you don't want to get recognised you can always stay at home and watch telly!"

Lilia:  "We do get recognised and it is all really positive - I am not sure if I enjoy it but I am used to it. Sometimes you get a surprise when you get recognised when you least expect it, perhaps when you are abroad on holiday in Dubai or Spain."

How does it feel to be competing against each other - once even in a dance off?

Lilia:  "Fabulous - as long as I beat him it's great!"

Darren: "As long as Lilia beats me it's great! No really, it's all good fun and we have some friendly banter about it together but nothing too serious. If I can't win, I want Lilia to win and vice-versa."

And how about the celebrities; what are they like to work with?

Lilia: "It all depends who you’ve got as your partner. Some of them can be great fun and you can bounce of each other but others are a little more difficult. But you have to credit them for putting themselves out there and trying something when they’re so far out of their comfort zone.

“They are like babies when they first arrive. You have to teach them absolutely everything; some of them still leave the show as toddlers but most of them go out as almost experts and it’s fantastic to see them grow from day one.”

Darren: “People expect them to be throwing tantrums here and there but it’s far from it. Although we’re all competing against each other, we also form a good bond backstage and nobody likes seeing someone leave the show on a Saturday. We’re all rooting for each other and keeping our fingers crossed that they get their routine right.

“It’s a tough environment for them; coming onto prime-time television to dance isn’t easy for anyone so they deserve a lot of credit,”

You've been incredibly successful in competitions in the past.  Have you left competition dancing behind now?

Lilia: "Yes we stopped competing two years ago.  But we are still competing with ourselves to perform at the highest level every day."

Last year you danced with English National Ballet in Strictly Gershwin at the Albert Hall.  Was dancing with a ballet company a new experience for you?  How was it different?

Lilia: "It was absolutely fantastic and we enjoyed it very much and felt that we learned a lot from working within that environment and also from the choreographers in the ballet world and how they work. 

"It is very different to what we are used to and it taught us a lot and it gave us a lot of experience for choreographing our show.  So it was a really positive experience."

Darren: "The difference is that they work in a very structured way within a group environment whereas in ballroom and latin we work more one on one. The experience was fantastic and we learned a lot."

Tell us about Essentially Dance, the project you're involved in which aims to introduce ballroom dance to schools.  Is it something you feel passionately about?

Darren: "Yes we both feel very passionately about it as we come across so many people now wanting to learn to dance, not just kids, adults as well and we see the real positive benefits. Not just physical but emotional too. Ballroom and latin dance really help with improving self awareness and self esteem.  

"We put together Essentially Dance which is part of the PE Curriculum in Schools and the response has been brilliant, both from the teachers and pupils. It's a really great programme and we have seen some fantastic results from the schools where Essentially Dance (www.essentiallydance.com) has been piloted.  The resource is being evaluated at present by Roehampton University and will go national in June when hopefully it will help to get as many children in the country as possible dancing."

You spend so much time together working - do you have any hobbies you do separately?

Darren: "With what we are doing at the moment the shelf life is so short that we want to perform as much as we can while we can.   

"That really goes for every dancer because at some point , like any athlete or sportsman,  it will come to an end and there is plenty of time for hobbies when you retire in your late thirties."

What kind of dance do you like to watch. Do you go to see dance performances at the theatre?

Lilia: "I like to watch any kind of dance because you can learn from every style as they all add  something different and I enjoy it all.  If we had more time I would see every show going."

Darren: "As well as seeing the dance and the choreography we both love seeing how the dancers connect with the audience.  We like to see how the dancers interpret the choreography in their own way and if they as individuals can draw us in." 

By Mark O'Haire

Times & Ticket Information

Performance Times

• Tuesday - Saturday at 7.30pm.
• Wednesday, Saturday & Sunday Mats at 2.30pm.

No 7.30pm performance on Wednesday 24th & Thursday 25th June.

Running Time: 1 hour 55 mins (including one 20 min interval).

Tickets: £15- £42.50.

Under 16s: Half price tickets for children (max 2 children per 1 adult).

Group Discounts: Groups 8+ 20% off stalls seats for most performances. Not available online or in conjunction with any other offer.

Call the Ticket Office on 0844 412 4300.

To book tickets on line for Latin Fever, starring Darren and Lilia, click here for London, or here for Birmingham.