In 1987, dance floors across the country said goodbye to hand jives and greased lightning, but the complexities of Dirty Dancing take months to perfect, writes Laura Redpath
I wasn’t born when Dirty Dancing came out. But with the impact it had on its generation, I can imagine DJs growing sick of requests to play Time of My Life while bar staff readied themselves to give first aid to those who thought they could nail the film’s trademark move in one attempt.
Type “couple re-enact Dirty Dancing lift” into Google, however, and you’ll see it’s a stunt that belongs in the “don’t try this at home” folder.
“Everyone’s height, weight and body shapes are different, so not just anyone can get up and do it straight away,” said Lewis Kirk, who plays Johnny in the west-end adaptation of the well-known tale.
“While rehearsing, we had to build up to the lift. We would start off on the floor and we would have to find the right balance points and I would hold up Jessie (Hart, who plays Baby) from there. When we were ready, we moved on to practising it while standing and we still have to practise now.”
It’s a 50-50 moment for Lewis and Jessie. And one the audience doesn’t want to see go wrong. Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze had numerous chances to capture the perfect move in front of the film cameras, but on stage, there’s only one take. It’s all about timing, and if it’s even just a little bit off, the moment everyone’s been waiting for is ruined.
“We’ve had a couple of rocky moments, but we’ve always managed to save it, said Jessie.
“It can be tricky as Baby’s dress is quite slippery, and if you don’t quite get the hip right, you can slip.”
For 23 year-old Jessie, her role in the UK tour of Dirty Dancing, which makes its way to His Majesty’s in Aberdeen on Tuesday, is her first major performing job. She graduated from Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts in London last July and has since played Agnes in the ITV drama Arthur and George, and Gerda in children’s classic The Snow Queen.
“I still can’t believe I’m in such a famous dance show. I’m more of a singer and an actress than a dancer. When my agent put me forward for the audition, I really wasn’t sure if it was right for me. But because Baby’s a learner, she isn’t meant to be a strong dancer.”
With a combination of tantalising routines and costume changes, the show is packed with energy and its cast requires a lot of stamina. Eating the right things, drinking plenty of water and getting enough rest are vital to keeping up with the show’s pace.
“You have to be able to deal with the physically demanding show eight nights a week,” said Lewis, who stood in as Link Larkin when Hairspray came to The Granite City in 2013.
Lewis first joined the cast of Dirty Dancing in February 2014 as part of the ensemble and first cover for Johnny. When the actor playing Johnny was injured, Lewis was given the chance to open the tour, before a cast change enabled him to permanently portray the character a year later.
“It was wonderful opening the tour. Of course it’s not nice seeing a colleague injured or off work, but having the opportunity to play such an iconic role was a great feeling.
“The end of the week is always particularly challenging as we have two shows on the Saturday with only a short time between them. The curtain goes up at 2.30pm on the Saturday and we have to be on stage an hour before hand to warm up.
“We’re always relieved on a Saturday as we have a day off to rest on the Sunday, but when the audience cheers at the end, you feel really proud of what you’ve achieved.”
Dirty Dancing runs at HMT in Aberdeen from Tuesday, September 8, until Saturday, October 3. For tickets visit www.aberdeenperformingarts.com