I don’t know why but I’m not the biggest fan of the movie Dirty Dancing. Parts of it are just too cheesy, even for me. But when I was given the chance to go see a dress rehearsal of the musical version, I couldn’t say no! Like a friend of mine always says, “just go and allow yourself to be surprised Hye,” so I did. After work on a Tuesday night, I made my way to the Royal Alex to line up for a seat; it was first-come, first-serve with a ticket. I had prepared myself for a long night, since rehearsals can go over time.

It was very interesting because the audience consisted of family & friends of those involved in the production but also people who are super fans of this movie/story. People were screaming when the first lights were turned on stage… I had my night carved out. The story is pretty much the same as that of the movie. The issues of social class, cultural stereotypes, human rights are still there. Frankly, the story seemed less cheesy on stage than it does on the movie. It could be that it’s a musical but I think it’s the staging of the story that made me like it even more. The set is very well put together; it is simple, versatile and the space is well covered. The lighting is great. There is use of digital video footage, which is actually live since we see some of the characters dancing/singing projected back on to the background of the set. My favourite use of video is when Johnny and Baby are in the rain and when they’re practicing their dancing in water. Besides video parts of the set are comprised of digital stills, which look phenomenal. In one scene when a cast member sings about young men going to Mississipi to fight for human rights, a picture of Martin Luther King Jr. is shown in the background. It worked very well in this case.

The cast you wonder? Well, they’re good. The leads of Baby (Monica West) and Johnny (Jake Simons) did well considering this was their first show with a live audience. I think they’ll get better over time. Some of the minor characters are played by very good singers/dancers. Overall, the dancing looks good on stage; very nicely executed. The costumes are colourful and very fun.

The show is well put together. Because this was a rehearsal there were some technical difficulties; nonetheless, these did not upset anyone in the audience. The energy was high and people just loved it. And I must admit, I was very pleasantly surprised…. If you are fan of the movie, I believe you’ll enjoy the musical very much. Enjoy!