EDINBURGH 2026: DIRTY DANCER Q&A
Dirty Dancer is at the Edinburgh Fringe at Underbelly Cowgate from 5 – 30 Aug
BWW catches up with Melissa Firlit to chat about bringing Dirty Dancer to the 2026 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
Tell us a bit about Dirty Dancer.
Dirty Dancer is a one-woman reimagining of Dirty Dancing told through the eyes of Baby Missy, the little girl who watched the film over and over again until it became part of her DNA.
It's part parody, part love letter, and part theatrical fever dream. I play a muiltiple of characters while recreating unforgettable moments from the film. Underneath all of that it's really about memory: the stories that raise us, the worlds we escape into, and what happens when we revisit them as adults. It's funny, physical, nostalgic, and full of dancing... as it should be.
Why do you think the film is so iconic all these years later?
Dirty Dancing has this incredible ability to meet you wherever you are in life. As a child, I watched it for the dancing, the romance, and because I desperately wanted to spend a summer at Kellerman's. As I got older, I began to understand everything that had been happening within the story all along. Essentially, the film and I grew up together. That's pretty rare. It's nostalgic because it continually brings people together as they keep discovering new parts of it. Every generation seems to find their own version of Dirty Dancing, and I love that.
Why bring it to Edinburgh?
The Fringe feels like the perfect home for this show. I've been lucky enough to experience Edinburgh both as an audience member and as an artist, and there's nowhere else quite like it. People come ready to discover something unexpected. They're willing to play, to imagine and invest in the work of those around them. A one-woman Dirty Dancing sounds a bit ridiculous on paper... which is exactly why the Fringe is the place to do it.
How are you planning to recreate the lift in a solo show?!
Very carefully. Laughs. The lift only works because of everything that happens before it. By the time we get there, I want the audience so invested that they're willing to take the leap with me. You'll just have to come and see how we make the magic happen.
What would you like audiences to take away from it?
More than anything, I hope people leave feeling joyful.
I hope people walk out thinking about the movies they watched on repeat, the songs that instantly transport them somewhere else, and the people and experiences that made them who they are. Dirty Dancer starts with my love of one film, but I hope it inspires audiences to revisit the stories, music, and memories that still light them up.
Dirty Dancer is at the Edinburgh Fringe at Underbelly Cowgate from 5 – 30 Aug (not 18) at 7:25pm. Ticket information here: https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/dirty-dancer
Photo by Bjorn Bolinder
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