Secret Cinema’s Dirty Dancing review - a boozey, campy dose of tongue-in-cheek fun
For you if:
You love a classic Secret Cinema experience
You’re looking for something fun and lighthearted out of doors
You’re in a group (it’s great for couples too, but I think particularly fun experienced in a gaggle)
Not for you if:
You’re not in the mood to throw yourself in - this is a very ‘it’s what you make of it’ experience
Grab your watermelons and dust off your dancing shoes! Secret Cinema’s Dirty Dancing is back for three weeks this Summer. In the beautiful weather we felt like we got immersed in a hop, skip and a jump as our whole group manage to look the 1963 part with items already in our wardrobe rotation. A Hawaiian shirt here, hot pants there; we might not have been dressed to a T, but it wasn’t difficult to channel the solar-powered, cha-cha-ing, holiday energy.
This easygoing vibe felt like it had infused the production, it was geared towards fun in the sun and gloriously uncomplicated. This is not Secret Cinema’s first rodeo as they did Dirty Dancing in 2016 and this familiarity shows; There’s less focus on complex narrative interaction which really works for the theming. instead, we have a boozey, campy, take on Butlins (or a festival) to explore. This is presented to us tongue-in-cheek with perversely enthusiastic, tannoy-wielding hosts ENFORCING THE FUN as soon as you come in.
I couldn’t help but think Londoners love Butlins as long as we’re taking part ironically. But of course, there’s a reason organised holiday set ups like Butlins and Centre Parcs have been so popular through the decades; We meet another group and play (lose at) volleyball, I discover my friend is an excellent Picasso-esque artist, we wonder why perennial wedding-favourite cornhole isn’t in every UK pub and get extremely overexcited that we can actually remember what a step full-change is. The activities are plentiful and fun and encourage learning new stuff and meeting new people.
Then, when you’ve done all the wholesome activities there’s ingratiating yourselves with the staff (who are sporting varying levels of dodgy American accents) and finding the staff quarters. This is a genuinely great bar devoid of the cheese, with great dancing and actors hauling half-gratified-half-terrified punters in for a twirl.
By the time the film starts, we’re pretty ready to sit down in an exhausted heap on our blanket and watch the film. We don’t quite rest though, there’s lots of clapping and shouting, downing watermelon jello shots and joining in dancing. The party vibe continues as the audience leaves Kellermans into the London night.
This is a great, classic Secret Cinema experience. It’s a lot of fun, doesn’t take itself too seriously and a brilliant one to go to in a big group of friends.
Secret Cinema’s Dirty Dancing is on until 31 July, tickets start at £52 for a group of four, although discount codes are available and available here
