GILES COUNTY, Virginia. – No one was cornered on the first day of the Dirty Dancing Days Festival at the infamous Mountain Lake Lodge.
“Dirty Dancing” is a film classic of the 80s, and yet 37 years after its release, the nostalgia of the story of Johnna and Baby in the lodge in Giles County lives on.
On Fridays and Saturdays, the Lodge will host the first ever Dirty Dancing Days Festival. The Lodge normally hosts Dirty Dancing Days throughout the summer, but you must stay at the Lodge to enjoy it. The festival allows anyone to come and enjoy the Lodge, which has some of the remarkable sets that people will remember from the film.
Heidi Stone is CEO and President of Mountain Lake Lodge. She knows there will be a party on Friday and Saturday, and she and her team have done everything they can to make it feel like something out of a movie.
“There’s no movie that’s as cult classic as Dirty Dancing. When you’re here, it’s a completely immersive environment. All the staff wear Kellerman T-shirts. Nothing has changed about the lodge. It’s this big, iconic stone lodge. It feels like Dirty Dancing,” Stone said.
People from all over the state started their weekend off right by coming to the first night.
Julie Moore traveled from Martinsville, Virginia, with her daughter, both well prepared and wearing their Dirty Dancing t-shirts.
“It opened up, this huge mist came down, just like in the scene, and I looked over at my daughter, who was carrying the watermelon at all the family gatherings, and she literally said, ‘We’re having the time of our lives, Mom,’ and it’s been like that ever since,” Moore said.
Some people came from even further afield. Melissa Stalbird’s mother celebrated her 70th birthday this weekend and she knew this would be a great opportunity to celebrate in a special way.
“Obviously everyone here is a fan, but we have to show our camaraderie in the right way. We thought, let’s get some T-shirts. We thought, why didn’t we buy them before? It’s cool that everyone is having as much fun as we are,” Stalbird said.
The event includes scavenger hunts, 80’s-themed dance contests, dance lessons, watermelon races, trivia contests, drink specials, “Dirty Dancing” merchandise and screenings of the original film.
Even if you didn’t attend the first day, you have the opportunity to attend the second day. You can purchase tickets here.
Click here to view the full festival schedule.
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