A packed and enthusiastic Brighton Centre welcomed Michael Ball back to the concert platform, fresh from his recent West End triumph in Andrew Lloyd Webber's latest musical The Woman In White, where he played the comic villain, Count Fosco.

It must have been a great relief for his many fans to see him restored to normal size after his stint as Fosco, where his body and face were padded out beyond all recognition.

On what was already a hot steamy night, Ball managed to raise the temperature with a high-powered and energetic performance which fairly crackled with electricity.

His varied repertoire, some old and some new, ranging from pop songs to songs from the shows, delighted his many fans - not all of whom were "ladies of a certain age".

Ball is never one to rest on his laurels and constantly seeks to demonstrate his versatility. He is equally at home on the musical theatre stage as well as the concert platform.

However, it was apparent from his performance he is at his finest when his material comes from the musicals.

The songs being character driven seem to appeal to the actor within - he is not just singing the number but performing the role. This was amply demonstrated in such numbers as This Is The Moment from Jekyll And Hyde and in Stephen Sondheim's great anthem, Being Alive. Often the commercial numbers paled in comparison.

A particular delight of the evening was his telling of how he was asked to take over one of the roles in Woman in White. Not the young romantic lead as he'd hoped but the grotesque and aging Fosco. To remedy this, he sang two of the young hero's ballads.

He was then joined by one of his co-stars from the West End production - Missy, a white rat, who gave a truly professional performance during the number I Can Get Away With Murder.

For the finale, he chose what can only be described as his Tom Jones moment with a medley of upbeat songs to which he gyrated sexually, much to the delight of the hordes of ladies who rushed from their seats to stand at the front of the stage - a further demonstration of his professionalism in knowing what to give his fans and how to play them.

He had started the concert with Queen's Having A Good Time and it's certainly what the audience had.