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Dirty Dancing Valentines Day gala raises over £30,000 for Refuge

Posted by Jack on Tuesday 15th July 2008 at 9:47AM

On Thursday 14th February, Dirty Dancing: The Classic Story On Stage played host to Refuge, a charity providing emergency accommodation to women and children who suffer from domestic abuse. The charity, which provides counselling and emotional support, was shown enormous support as the Aldwych Theatre packed in over 1,100 willing and excited theatregoers, with tickets for the event selling for almost twice their usual cost.

The gala evening was hosted by Sheryl Gascoigne and her daughter Bianca, both supporters and campaigners for Refuge. Sheryl, of course, suffered years of violent abuse at the hands her alcoholic husband Paul Gascoigne, and was “thrilled to be able to host this fundraising event.” As well as a pulsating performance of the show, the gala night also featured an auction, a prize draw with goodies including backstage tours of the Aldwych Theatre, and speeches by Bianca and Sheryl.

Dirty Dancing, of course based on the iconic film starring Patrick Swayze, has been a phenomenal success worldwide since the first stage production opened in Australia in 2004, and by the time it arrived in London in October 2006, it had achieved the highest pre-sales in British theatre history.

Predictably, it has proved a huge hit with the girls, with hen parties and groups of girlfriends booking their trips to the Aldwych up to a year in advance and each performance of Dirty Dancing becomes the ultimate girls’ night out. This naturally made Dirty Dancing: The Classic Story On Stage the ideal setting to raise funds for Refuge, which continues to provide a lifeline to thousands of women in the UK who suffer from violence and abuse in their own homes.