The Last Tango, Sunderland Empire

ALL great things must come to an end and it's sad to think Vincent Simone and Flavia Cacace will not be gracing the stage again like this. It would be remiss to dismiss the pair who rose to fame on the back of television's Strictly Come Dancing as X Factor-like, ephemeral hype because there is a deeper story: the duo have been World Argentine Tango world champions for the past 20 years and have – well and truly – paid their dues.

Like their previous shows Midnight Tango and Dance ‘Til Dawn this was every bit as brilliant. However, being the last, it had an overtone of sadness throughout. It's a basic set and a thin narrative about an older man (Teddy Kempner) packing away things in his attic (set above the stage), looking back on his life.

We see in his imagination how a couple (Simone and Cacace), aided by solo singer Matthew Gent and a cast of ten dancers, met in the late 1930s, dated, married, bought a family home, had children, celebrated their 40th and eventually her death.

Basic and thin as they may be, the set and storyline are designed not to get in the way of an eclectic mix of styles, we go from 1920s flapper dancing to the early 1960s via a soundtrack of 30 fantastic songs that included Moonlight Serenade, Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, Magic Moments, Beyond The Sea, When I fall in Love and Save the Last Dance for me.

The swansong is a beautiful rumba and the applause and bows are followed by their trademark dance; a show-stopping Argentine tango.

* Continues until Saturday (Feb 14). Box Office: 0844-871-3022. Then: May 16 to 21, Darlington Civic Theatre. 01325-486555 or darlingtoncivic.co.uk

Ed Waugh