Casting for North American Tour of DIRTY DANCING Announced

The producers of Dirty Dancing - The Classic Story On Stage announced casting today for the third year of the North American Tour, which coincides with the film's 30th anniversary.

The production is making a tour stop at Waterbury's Palace Theater, October 7 - 9 for four performances kicking off the venue's 16 - 17 Webster Broadway Series.

Tickets are $74/ $69/$54 and on sale and can be purchased online at www.palacetheaterct.org, by phone at 203-346-2000, or in person at the Box Office, 100 East Main St. Additional sponsor is Hoffman Auto Group.

Christopher Tierney, having originally performed the role of Johnny Castle during the 2015 Toronto engagement, returned to the show during it most recent North American tour and will once again thrill audiences alongside the fast-rising young star Bronwyn Reed as Frances "Baby" Houseman. Tierney and Reed lead a company of 26.

Dirty Dancing - The Classic Story On Stage features an eight piece band that performs the timeless hits on stage, led by Conductor Alan J. Plado.

The production's book is written by Eleanor Bergstein, author of the original script of the film, and the North American tour is directed byJames Powell with choreography by Michele Lynch based on the original choreography by Kate Champion.

"As I learned how many people watched the movie over and over and over," said Eleanor Bergstein, screenwriter of the film Dirty Dancing and book writer for the production, "I began to think that what they really wanted was to share more physically in the event, to step through the screen and be there while the story was happening. And if that was true, then its natural form was theatre - live audiences watching live bodies dancing and singing here and now in the present - on the log, on the bridge, on the dance floor and in the staff quarters at Kellerman's. Writing it for the stage, I was also able to add more scenes with Baby and Johnny, more about the family, more songs I couldn't afford last time, and, best of all - more dancing. We have added 20 new original scenes and 36 numbers of live music played by an eight piece band onstage, which invite the audience to come into Kellerman's and experience the story in a whole new way as a live event as it happens."

Dirty Dancing - The Classic Story On Stage is an unprecedented live experience, exploding with heart-pounding music, passionate romance and sensational dancing. Seen by millions across the globe, this timeless love story features the hit songs "Hungry Eyes," "Hey Baby," "Do You Love Me?" and the heart-stopping "(I've Had) The Time Of My Life." London's Sunday Express says "This crowd-pleasing stage adaptation hits the jackpot!"

It's the summer of 1963, and 17-year-old Frances 'Baby' Houseman is on vacation in New York's Catskill Mountains with her older sister and parents. Mesmerized by the racy dance moves and pounding rhythms she discovers in the resort's staff quarters, Baby can't wait to be part of the scene, especially when she catches sight of Johnny Castle, the resort's sexy dance instructor. Passions ignite and Baby's life changes forever when she is thrown in to the deep end as Johnny's leading lady, both on-stage and off.

Dirty Dancing - The Classic Story On Stage was first performed at the Theatre Royal in Sydney, Australia in November 2004 before embarking upon a hugely successful tour of Australia and New Zealand.

The production, having begun performances on London's West End in October 2006 with a record breaking £15 million advance and a complete sell-out for the first six months, went on to become the longest running show in the history of the Aldwych Theatre. It closed in July 2011 in advance of a two-year UK national tour and then returned to London for a strictly limited season at the Piccadilly Theatre.

The present North American tour, having launched in Washington, DC at The National Theatre on August 25, 2014, has played over 40 cities including: Los Angeles, San Francisco, Houston, Minneapolis, San Antonio, Austin, New Orleans, Seattle, Costa Mesa, Charlotte, Tampa, San Diego, Las Vegas, Boston, Cleveland and many more. The third season of this tour coincides with the 30th anniversary of the original story on screen.

The North American tour of Dirty Dancing - The Classic Story On Stage is produced by Amber Jacobsen, NETworks Presentations LLC, Grove Entertainment and Col Joye in association with Lionsgate and Magic Hour Productions.

For more information about the production or tour, please visit http://us.dirtydancingontour.com/.