Dazzling feat

Legend has it that when the Romantic ballerina Marie Taglioni gave her farewell performance in St Petersburg a group of wealthy fans bought a pair of her slippers, and cooked and ate them as a token of their admiration. Shoe-fetishism has since reached new heights, thanks to Sex — on heels — in the City. Indeed, Sarah Jessica Parker/Carrie Bradshaw’s canonisation of one of the most idealised items of clothing plays a significant part in Shoes, which makes a welcome comeback to the West End. Although it is labelled a musical, Shoes draws upon the long-forgotten tradition of the old review, namely a series of almost independent song-and-dance numbers held together by a thematic pretext.

Dance dominates, thanks to the collaboration of musical supremo Stephen Mear with some of the most prestigious modern and postmodern dance-makers of the moment: Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Aletta Collins, Kate Prince and Mark Smith. This is not, however, one of those ill-fated attempts by revered dance gurus to have a go at something different — which, traditionally, is a recipe for disaster.