STAGE TUBE: Doing Hair Backstage with DIRTY DANCING's 'Baby' at Birmingham Hippodrome

Dirty Dancing – The Classic Story On Stage, written by Eleanor Bergstein, script writer and creator of the phenomenally successful film, features all the much-loved characters and original dialogue from the iconic film with exciting extra scenes added in. The first ever UK tour opened in Bristol in September 2011, and has since broken box office records across the country, making it one of the most successful tours in UK history. It is currently booking through to May 2013, and tickets are in high demand. Below, watch footage of Jill Winternitz (Baby) getting her hair done backstage at the Birmingham Hippodrome!

The tantalising dance sequences and brand new choreography come alive on stage, set to all the hits from the unforgettable soundtrack, such as 'Do You Love Me?', 'Hungry Eyes' and the Academy Award Winning '(I've Had) The Time Of My Life', plus many more songs that weren't on the original recording, making the show a truly extraordinary live experience.

More than 5 million people worldwide have now seen this sensational production, with the London show alone having been seen by over 1 million audience members. Having opened in London in 2006, Dirty Dancing – The Classic Story On Stage was sold out 6 months in advance. The show played for five triumphant years at the Aldwych Theatre, breaking all box office records with advance ticket sales of over £15 million, which made it the fastest ever selling West End show.

American actress Winternitz stars as idealistic 'Baby Houseman', the role taken by Jennifer Grey in the film, who discovers love and life in the summer she will never forget. Jill trained at RADA and her theatre credits include 'Ophelia' in Hamlet and 'The Prioress' in The Canterbury Tales (Queen Mary 2); Wounded (Los Angeles Theatre Ensemble); 'Nina' in The Seagull (MXAT) and Sunday in the Park with George (Interlochen Center for the Arts).

Nicky Griffiths takes on the role of 'Penny Johnson', having been a member of the Dirty Dancing touring company since the show opened in Bristol. Her other credits include 'Lisa' in Mamma Mia! (Prince of Wales); 'Lou-Anne' and understudy 'Amber Von-Tussle' in the original London cast of Hairspray (Shaftesbury); the original London cast of Wicked (Apollo Victoria) and Grease (UK tour).

Paul-Michael Jones, who has attracted huge critical and public acclaim on the tour so far, continues to star as 'Johnny Castle', one of the most iconic roles in popular culture, made famous around the world by Patrick Swayze in the 1987 smash hit movie. Paul-Michael trained at Laine Theatre Arts, graduating in 2007. His theatre credits include 'Eddie' in Mamma Mia! (Prince of Wales); understudying and performing the roles of 'Jake' and 'Adrian' in Never Forget (UK tour); 'Jack' in Jack & The Beanstalk (Victoria Theatre, Halifax); We Will Rock You (Cologne) and dance captain in Fame – the Musical (European tour). He has also represented England as a Latin American and Ballroom Dancer, as one of the top two English couples, at The World Championships in Singapore.

James Coombes appears as 'Dr. Jake Houseman', Julia Nagle as 'Marjorie Houseman', EmiLia Williams as 'Lisa Houseman', Wayne Smith as 'Billy Kostecki', Michael Remick as 'Max Kellerman', Stefan Menaul as 'Neil Kellerman', Colin Charles as 'Tito Suarez' and Tony Stansfield as 'Mr Schumacher'. Other members of the new company include: Lizzie Stavrou, Tara Verloop, Kate-Emma Portlock, Rosa O'Reilly, Lewis Davies, Callum Nicol, Adam Philpott, Will Tyler, Jenny Wickham, Rebecca Hodge, Vanessa Campbell, Faisal Khodabukus, Philip Marriott, Ben Harris and Jonathan Cordin.

Tickets for Dirty Dancing are priced from £20-£55 and are available on 0844 338 5000 or you can choose and book tickets online at www.birminghamhippodrome.com.

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