On a balmy Tuesday evening a crowd descended upon The Palace Theatre on Oxford Road for the opening night of Dirty Dancing. Mainly women wearing summer dresses and even one in a bride’s veil (an excellent choice of hen do activity - more on that later) took to their seats to watch one of the most famous stories unfold on stage.
The 1987 original film of Dirty Dancing has a cult following and is beloved by generations. It’s a classic and we all know these need to be handled with care. But this production, arriving fresh from the West End, sets to bring ‘the classic story on stage’ - and it does just that.
It’s not a traditional musical as such; the main characters don’t burst into song and instead there’s a band which performs on stage alongside them. Imagine if Baby and Johnny actually did sing along to (I’ve Had) The Time of My Life instead of just mouthing along to it, now that could be very cringe-inducing. Thankfully, this is avoided.
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Just like the film, we’re even treated to an ‘opening credits’ type sequence as dancers take to the stage to give us a glimpse of those infamous moves “that all the kids are doing in their basements back home”. It all begins with the Houseman family arriving Kellermans, a bustling Catskills resort at the height of the summer season. Frances “Baby” Houseman, played by Kira Malou, sets the scene as we’re transported back to 1963.
We meet pretty much all the characters in the opening scene, from cheerful big sister Lisa (Daisy Steere) to the gorgeous dancer Penny Johnson (Georgia Apsinall). But when Johnny Castle strides on stage the audience whooped and wolf whistled.
Donning a pair of sunglasses and a slick leather jacket, Michael O’Reilly could easily have been a double for Patrick Swayze. While there’s a lot of pressure on the cast to live up to the fans' expectations when it comes to the characters - Kira and Michael have big shoes to fill - they all manage to convey the essence of the film without imitating or becoming a parody.
The storyline sits pretty close to the original film, too, with a few extra scenes and songs thrown in. There’s all the fan favourites, including the iconic “I carried a watermelon” line met with laughter from the audience.
Naturally the dancing itself must be mentioned. From Penny kicking her legs impossibly high during the mambo to Johnny and Baby sharing a steamy number in his cabin, there’s a lot of it and it’s all extremely good. And quite dirty. Cue more wolf whistles, especially when Johnny takes his top off (I told you it was a good idea for a hen do).
Throughout the show a compact set with white wooden fencing, panelling and string lights is expertly used to become several aspects of the holiday resort, with seamless transitions done by the cast. The famous lake scene where they practise the lift, which could be very tricky to recreate on stage, is creatively done behind a screen.
In the final scene we served as the real audience for the end of season show - this is heads up if you’ve got an aisle seat - and everyone was clapping along to (I’ve Had) The Time of My Life. After the cast received a standing ovation we were all invited to get up and dance to a final rendition of Yes as the band and singers danced on stage.
It was a euphoric end to a story that’s been loved by fans for more than 30 years, but this time we would allowed to join in and immerse ourselves in the magic of that summer at Kellerman's.
Dirty Dancing is on at The Palace Theatre until Saturday June 3.
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