Diversity SOUL UK Tour 2026 At Liverpool Empire Review

DISCLOSURE – TICKETS TO SEE THE SHOW WERE GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER AND GUEST FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW

Reviewed by Dottie Rood

So how many of you remember Diversity from their win on Britain’s Got Talent 17 years ago?

They were a dance troupe based in London and were made up of siblings and friends of varying ages (and sizes) but not varying abilities, they were all fantastic! They performed contemporary hip hop dances, street dancing, breakdance, acrobatics and ‘popping robot-ting lyrical hip-hop’.

At the time I think everyone expected Susan Boyle (remember her?) to win but no, Diversity took the winning place. As I said all of that was 17 years ago and they have done lots since then, but this is their first run of their ‘SOUL concept tour (written and produced by Ashley Banjo) and, WOW, what a spectacular show it was!

Diversity is still made up of lots of the original cast: Perri Keily, Mitchell Craske, Warren Russell, plus Nathan Ramsey, Adam McKop, Kelvin Clark, Jordan Samuel, Shante Samuel, Starr Keily, Georgia Lewis, Curtis Butler, Abbie Pheasey and of course their leader, founder and choreographer, Ashley Banjo. I’ve got to admit I was a bit concerned that the show may not be as ‘energetic’ due to their increase in age, but I need not have worried as the dynamic energy level and enthusiasm on every level was unbelievable.

I found this description of what the SOUL tour is about (www.diversityofficial.com), and I think it sums up the show really well:
“The future is now. Humans have become plugged in and completely connected to a world full of Artificial Intelligence (AI) -A world in which it is hard to distinguish reality from fiction, AI has become so advanced it’s considered a life form of its very own.
Is this the next stage in our evolution?
What exactly have we created?
What makes us human …SOUL.”

When the show started, we saw a huge screen at the back of the stage showing what Diversity is doing now, it felt a bit like being in the cinema and was a bit off putting in this beautiful theatre, The Empire, but I need not have worried. Although the screen was used frequently throughout the show it was such an integral thoughtful addition you didn’t notice the difference between the screen and the dancing in front of it. This might have been what the show was trying to prove, can humans and technology exist side by side? In this case it worked well. However, the story (and yes there was a story!) explored what different aspects of AI and other forms of technology are doing to our emotional state, is it taking over every aspect of our lives? Is there a future were both can live side by side?

Using the character ‘George’ (an elderly man), who is shown throughout on the screen chatting to Ashley Banjo about the meaning of life, sharing memories and discussing human connection in this digital age the show adds the Diversity famous dance routines to enhance the storyline. It was a good format that was thought provoking and emotional to experience but left you feeling uplifted and hopeful for our future with technology in our lives.

I need to give a shout out to the technology/lighting/musical teams as not only did we have fantastic lighting changes, flashes, lasers and scenes were the dancers seemed to be ‘moving’ the beams of light we also had a robot called Roger, rain sequences and brilliant soundtracks! All in all, a show not to be missed!

The SOUL tour started in February 2026 and was on at The Empire for two nights, 16th & 17th March 2026 but is continuing until May 2026. It was scheduled to perform 60 dates in the UK and Ireland but has already added 5 more performances. It will be shown in 31 towns and cities so please check as I’m sure you will find one near you.

The Empire is a lovely theatre in the heart of Liverpool; it has really good transport links and offers a variety of reasonably priced drinks and snacks.

Rating: 5/5

Tickets cost from: £32.00 plus £2.00 booking fee.

Diversity SOUL tour 2026 was at The Empire Theatre, 1 Lime Street, Liverpool, Merseyside L11JE from 16th and 17th March 2026. For more information or to book tickets visit: www.ticketmaster.co.uk / www.atgtickets.com or call the box office on 08448 713017.