Dirty Dancing returns to W/E in December
Preview by Lizzie Guilfoyle
DIRTY Dancing, currently touring the UK, will return to the West End for a limited 30 performances this Christmas, playing at the Phoenix Theatre from December 6 to December 31, 2016.
Dirty Dancing, which was first seen at the Aldwych Theatre in 2006, was adapted for stage by the film’s screenwriter Eleanor Bergstein whose own childhood memories of family holidays in the Catskill’s provided the setting.
The film, which starred Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, was a huge success. Set in the 1960s, at an upmarket holiday camp in America’s Catskill Mountains, it sees the young and naive Frances “Baby” Houseman fall for the charms of the camp’s dance instructor, worldly-wise Johnny Castle.
Featuring hugely memorable songs such as Hungry Eyes, Do You Love Me? and the iconic I’ve Had the Time of My Life and performed by a cast of 37, the touring production of Dirty Dancing has earned over £5.5million since opening in Blackpool in August 2016.
Lewis Griffiths currently stars as Johnny Castle (Jersey Boys, Ghost the Musical, Legally Blonde), opposite Katie Hartland in her professional debut as Baby Houseman and Carlie Milner as Penny Johnson.
Further cast members include Simone Craddock as Marjorie Houseman, Roger Martin as Max Kellerman, Jo Servi as Tito Suarez, Lizzie Ottley as Lisa Houseman, Michael Kentas as Billy Kostecki, Greg Fossard as Neil Kellerman, Tony Stansfield as Mr Schumacher, Daniela Pobega as Elizabeth and Camilla Rowland as Vivian.
Produced by Karl Sydow and Paul Elliott, the production is directed by Federico Bellone, with choreography by Gillian Bruce and design by Robert Comotti.
Dirty Dancing will bridge the gap between Vincent Simone and Flavia Cacace’s The Last Tango, which completes its run on December 3, 2016, and The Girls, the Gary Barlow musical based on the 2003 Calendar Girls film, which runs from January 28 to April 22, 2017.