Gorgeous dancer Callum talks…well…gorgeous things.
From Shaking It Off with Taylor Swift to shaking his tush on Strictly, Callum Macdonald is swiftly pirouetting himself to inevitable stardom. Currently Fosse-ing his figure across the stage of the Phoenix Theatre in the smash hit Chicago, we grabbed a post show vodka-soda and got chatting about life as a West End dancer.
When did you know you wanted to become a dancer?
It was always in me you know! Even when I was a baby I was always dancing around in my high chair and stuff. There didn’t seem to be any other options really, it was all I wanted to do. I didn’t start properly until I was eleven, and wasn’t really taking it seriously then. I’d say when I was about 15/16 that I went ‘yep’ I definitely want to become a professional dancer.
Was there anything in early life that made you really want to go ahead and pursue it?
YES. I was really obsessed with musical theatre when I was younger and then as I got older, things like watching arena tours and the VMA’s and the Brit awards and stuff, anytime there was dancing on the TV I thought ‘that’s me, that’s what I need to be doing’. I’d look at it and think ‘yep, that’s it, I’ve found it, that’s my calling’.
So at 16 you decided ‘right, this is what I’m going to do’. How did you crack on and do that?
Well, I quit not long after taking it up at eleven because I was getting bullied. But when I was 16 and made this decision, spoke to my parents and I got straight back into training at a local dance school, Stage Right Studio in Rosyton.
Shout out to Royston there.
ROYSTON!
And then where?
I really, really wanted to head for musical theatre college in London, but it’s very expensive and mum and dad wanted to move out to Australia. So I flew out and auditioned for a college in Brisbane, The Australian Dance Performance Institute, and got in. That was that. I trained there for three years! Then I worked travelling the world travelling on ships for three years, so I came back here when I was 22.
Is it true that they have weekly weigh-ins for cruise performers?
Obviously they want you to stay in shape, there’s no vigorous fitness regime that are pushed upon you. There are, if you’re flying (in my last contract I was an aerialist as well) you had to train for that. They did USED to weigh you. They use to weigh the dancer every month, or two weeks or so, but one of the girls in my cast actually kicked up a fuss and got that stopped, which is a good thing in the long run. You didn’t realise at the time but… it was more so that people were staying as they were meant to be, no one was inspecting.
Any wild stories whilst sailing the high seas?
Oh GOD! There are so many, ship life is pretty crazy. You spend half your time dancing in the shows, and the rest of the time you’re just getting drunk in ports, on a beach in the Caribbean. It’s a lot of fun. When we were flying, you’d be flying around in the show dressed as a fish or whatever, and it rocks back and forth so you’ve got like four fish on a point and we’re all swinging into each other across the stage which was so fun. People were falling over left, right and centre. You’d jump in the show and all of the sudden you’re on the floor, the floor comes back to you a lot quicker than you’re expecting it to…
Right, so you’re back in London. How was finding work?
I got here and I was like ‘RIGHT, let’s hustle’, got an agent as soon as possible. At first it was all about musical theatre to me. I tried to have a few normal jobs, but I just couldn’t commit to them. I stood out on the street selling people photoshoots, this is a real company… I was working off a commission getting like 80% of the sale, but you’re just talking people into something you really don’t believe in, all day long. Then I’d make them give me cash, and they’d give me £80 on the spot. Like, c’mon girl, you should not trust me. Three months in it started kicking off!
What would you say are some career highlights…?
First it was Cabaret, then Chicago the China tour straight after that. Then decided to give the commercial side a go, I started working on Strictly, Got To Dance with Kimberly Wyatt. Then the first big gig was Taylor Swift’s performance on the X Factor, the Shake It Off premier!
That’s insane! So, how did you nab the role in Chicago?
They were only seeing people who’d done it before, and thankfully I had, on a cruise.
So what do people not know about being in a West End show? Give us some backstage gossip.
I’ll tell you what, it’s a lot of fun! I leave smiling every night. But it’s so much work, especially now with this culture of bringing in celebrities to sell more tickets. You’re put in rehearsals a bit more, but it’s all for the good of the show. It becomes your life. It’s great too to have a steady pay check. I mean, I wouldn’t say do a West End job for the money… but it is nice to have a sturdy pay check.
Your costumes are so tight and skimpy. Are you ever nervous to head out and perform with no… wiggle room?
That’s very true. That’s why I run over to the gym whenever I get a spare hour. There’s not much room for error with these costumes, they stay tight and right and don’t move anywhere. You can feel, for the boys, we don’t like it when the shirt feels a bit baggy because we want to be bigger, more muscle. If your trousers are feeling a little loose around the side it’s like heartbreaking! You feel the show is ruined so you take yourself to corner and do a bunch of squats.
With the show ‘becoming your life’, is there time for dating?
There’s always time to date. But I’m single, I’m having fun and doing my thing. I’m quite career driven at the moment, a lot of goals to hit, focusing on that right now. But I’m very open minded, what will be will be… whatever happens or doesn’t happen…
To find out more about Callum, head over to his Instagram @callumseanmacdonald. To get your hands on some Chicago tickets head over to ATGTickets.com.
Words by Ifan Llewelyn
Images by Arron Dunworth
