Each time the roaring wave that is Strictly Come Dancing hits the shore, it leaves behind a few precious pebbles on the beach. Having been sufficiently polished by the giant BBC show, these shiny stones start to build a life for themselves, some more successfully than others. One of the first Strictly offspring to hit the road, Anton Du Beke proved that his comic timing is just as sharp as his dancing (there’s a reason he’s now a judge on the programme). Most recently, Johannes Radebe brought no end of joy to dance fans with his Freedom Unleashed tour. In-between, several other members of Strictly’s professional cast have struck out on their own, to varying effect.

Like them, Nikita Kuzmin has already garnered an enviably large following from his four years on Strictly and one series of Celebrity Big Brother. So although playing large-scale venues on your first ever tour might seem a bold move, the screams meeting his arrival on stage suggest Kuzmin is right to know his worth. Plus anyone who leaves their home in Ukraine aged nine to pursue their dream, win multiple championships in Italy as a teenager, before being snapped up by TV producers in Germany and the UK, was never going to settle for small-time. Midnight Dancer is a big, ambitious show, if something of a mixed bag. Joined by nine dancers and a singer, Kuzmin is clearly trying to entertain the inordinately wide demographic that tunes into Strictly on a Saturday night.

And so, hitting the spot for some will be the ‘don’t look at my bum… oh go on then’ moments, routines danced to ‘It’s Raining Men’ and ‘I Will Survive’, and sequins galore. Others will engage more with the emotionally charged routines in the second half, which take a more contemporary approach. A wafer-thin narrative about a nasty agent, the film star he represents and the man she loves is threaded throughout, but you’d be forgiven for being completely baffled by it. Better to focus on the choreography and its execution, which never falls short. Andreea Toma, in particular, is stunning as Kuzmin’s leading lady, while Rebecca Lisewski’s vocal prowess is remarkable.

Kuzmin may not have the witty repartee of Du Beke or the mesmerising presence of Radebe, but this is still an impressive debut. Attempts at comedy in the first half and fleeting vignettes that feel strangely aimless are all forgotten after the interval when the show takes a monumental turn for the better. Routines inspired by Moulin Rouge! and La La Land are delivered with purpose and flair, a moment of hilarious audience participation has everyone in stitches, and two moving routines that demonstrate Kuzmin’s emotional reach are captivating. A little more finesse and focus, both stylistically and narratively, and Kuzmin will be a force to be reckoned with 

Nikita Kuzmin: Midnight Dancer is touring the UK until Saturday 24 May; reviewed at Edinburgh Playhouse.