Bruno Langley is just about to hit the treadmill, a prospect that doesn’t exactly fill him with joy.

“You’ve got to keep fit on a tour like this,” he says. “I’d rather be going out for beers after every show, but this is a 40-week tour. I’d be fit for nothing if I did that.”

Since Bruno is starring in Flashdance The Musical, featuring fast-paced choreography by Arlene Phillips, sticking to the treadmill is probably a wise move.

“My character doesn’t do much dancing – I sing, act and move to music,” grins Bruno. “But you need to be physically fit to keep up with a tour like this.”

Bruno, 25, plays Jimmy Kaminsky, a hoodie with attitude who slopes around being generally moody and up to no good.

“I play him as a good kid gone bad,” says Bruno. “Something happens in life to make people like that. Jimmy knows Alex, the main character, from school and life has dealt him some tough knocks. You could say he’s misunderstood. It’s a great role for me because he’s a bad boy, not the kind of character people associate me with. I seem to have a ‘nice guy’ face.

“It’s great to have chance to sing too. I grew up in a big musical family, we all played instruments and sang together, but it’s not something I do very often these days.”

The show is the stage adaptation of Eighties movie Flashdance. Bruno believes it has more substance than the big screen version. “From what I know the show is a lot stronger, with more meat on the bones of the story. My character has certainly been fleshed out,” he says.

A show like Flashdance has a captive audience because of the huge popularity of the film, but Bruno says it’s a risk taking any new show around the country.

“People often stick to what they know. If they’ve seen a show and loved it, they’ll go and see it again. They might not be so inclined to try a new show,” he says. “Having said that, we’re getting great audiences who are loving it. It’s partly a generational thing; people think of the film and the music and relate it to a specific time of their life. As with shows like Footloose and Dirty Dancing, those who loved the film will come and see the show.

“But it’s also an original show, with original songs. It’s great to get something out there that’s new. We’re giving audiences chance to see something different from the usual shows doing the rounds.”

Flashdance is the story of a teenage dancer, Alex, who’s chasing a dream of making it to the Shipley Academy of Dance. That would be the Pittsburgh Shipley, not the Bradford one.

In the film, Alex is the somewhat unlikely combination of a welder by day and a nightclub dancer by night.

Will we be seeing any welding in the show? “I wondered about that one too but, yes, it’s all in there. Doesn’t everyone do a spot of welding from time to time?” grins Bruno. “It’s set in an industrial community where life is hard. A lot of our creative team are American which is a big help to us in terms of keeping the American accent up to scratch.”

Originally from Norfolk, Bruno moved to Buxton in Derbyshire when he was four and later settled in Manchester where he studied drama. After a small non-speaking role in Coronation Street, playing Candice Stowe’s boyfriend, he landed a part in BBC1 comedy drama Linda Green.

While filming that, he was asked to audition for another Coronation Street role – Todd Grimshaw, brother of beefy Jason and son of no-nonsense Eileen.

Fresh-faced Todd was the bright, sensitive lad with university prospects who broke his mum’s heart when he threw away the chance of Oxbridge to take up with Sarah Platt. When Todd realised he was more interested in Sarah’s brother, Nick, he gave the Street its first gay kiss.

“It was great as a young actor to have such big storylines,” says Bruno, who was the partner of Tina O’Brien, alias Sarah Platt, while they were an on-screen couple.

“I look on that period of my life as my professional actor training. It was good discipline; you had to turn up on time, learn your lines and work to tight deadlines. But I didn’t go into acting to stick with one role.

“I’m still at the stage where people ask me about Coronation Street, but I hope I reach the point when I’m known for other things. I’d worry if that never happened!”

Since leaving the Street four years ago, Bruno has had an ongoing role in Dr Who, alongside Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper, and his theatre credits include Romeo in Romeo and Juliet and Geoffrey in A Taste Of Honey, both critically acclaimed. He also appeared in the films Halal Harry and League Of Gentlemen’s Apocalypse.

Has Flashdance given him a taste for musicals? “I’m not planning on doing another one straight away,” says Bruno, who’s the proud father of a baby son, Freddie. “I’d like to do some more TV or film work, that’s a more naturalistic form of acting which I want to get my teeth into again.”

Flashdance The Musical runs at the Alhambra from September 29 to October 4. For tickets ring (01274) 432000.

© Manchester Evening News, 2/9/08

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