I think the cause of rows of empty seats in the theatre is the show’s title. It doesn’t give you any idea of what to expect. I looked up its meaning. “A flashmob is a group of people who assemble suddenly in a public place to perform an unusual and seemingly pointless act; then quickly disperse.”

That won’t put bums on seats. But had they been at the New Theatre on Friday, the owners of those bums would have enjoyed a terrific show. It combines acts from star dancers of television shows, and fuses their talents into a vague storyline about a man and a girl on a blind date, and how their relationship develops.

They were Nicolette Whitley and Renako McDonald from Sky 1’s Got to Dance, who performed a long intricate and athletic duet.

We also had the now world-renowned Flawless in several precise and gymnastic routines, and that little dynamo Tommy Franzen (runner up in So You Think You Can Dance), who, having got drunk in a nightclub-scene with the rest of the cast, did a hilarious dance as he tried to get dressed the following morning.

Irish dancers Borsena (Erin Trevena and Tom Brosnan) loosened up during a party scene, and used their arms to good effect for a change, and Kevin Clifton and Karen Hauer, from Strictly, clearly enjoyed being able to broaden out after the comparative straight-jacket of the television show, and danced brilliantly in a number of styles, including a flashy pasa doble.

What I particularly like about this show is that it delivers what it promises . . . not a succession of individual acts, but a fusion of many different styles into one cohesive show, all done with great flair and panache.

Flash Mob came to Oxford near the beginning of an enormous tour which includes about 40 venues. Several of them are within easy reach of this area: the Derngate, Northampton, on June 28, the Wyvern, Swindon, on June 30, the Wycombe Swan on July 2, Milton Keynes Theatre on July 17, and the Hexagon, Reading, on July 24.

Take it from me, this is well worth the trip.