I shall overcome...

Nobody puts baby in a corner, but Mirvish does put a piece of shit in a theatre. That piece of shit is entitled Dirty Dancing, which I had the misfortune of seeing on opening night here in Toronto. You know a show is a turkey, when you receive a comp ticket and you are still wanting to leave at intermission. I seriously cannot imagine spending money on this crap. It is the theatrical equivilent of food you would put in a trough for a sow.

The whole show is bland and boring and no scene in the second act is longer than fifteen seconds. The whole thing had a very Rocky Horror-esque feel to it with women, who loved the 80's classic, waiting anxiously to join in with the actors as they yelp out the iconic "I carried a watermelon" or "Nobody Puts Baby in a Corner" lines.

Any redeeming factors you ask? The set was cool, but looked like a theme park ride. Baby offered the only remotely human performance. I stand by that I think Melissa O'Neil (Season Three Canadian Idol Winner appears in various Supporting roles) has a decent voice. Johnny's body was nice. Hmmm... yeah, that's it.

Perhaps the most insulting thing of all, and there are too many to list, was the scene in which the token black female castmate was forced to sing "We shall overcome", while a projection of Martin Luther King Jr. is projected on the back wall. At that moment, which is possibly the most offensive thing I've ever seen in a theatre, I'm sure that MLK Jr. must have been convulsing in his grave, while the singer on stage wishes she could just escort herself to an early one.

Safe to say I will not be returning for a second viewing of Dirty Dancing the Musical. However, I shall overcome...