IF ANYONE knows how to have a hit musical, then it has to be producer Karl Sydow, writes John Anson.

For Karl has been involved in hugely successful productions of Dirty Dancing all over the world for the past 12 years - and now he’s behind a brand new interpretation of the show which premieres in Blackpool this week before heading off around the UK on a tour which lasts well into 2017.

But he’s not taking anything for granted.

“You don’t have any room for complacency,” he said. “You have to stay on top of it all the time.”

The new show will be the fifth major revamp of the show that he has been involved in and he admits that the new production is the raunchiest yet.

“It’s a very sexy show,” he said, “but there’s nothing to offend. The original film had quite mature themes which was one of the reasons it was so successful.”

Dirty Dancing tells the story of Baby, a teenage girl who goes to a holiday camp with her family in 1963 where she encounters the camp’s resident dance instructor Johnny.

The show is packed with great music of the period and scintillating dance routines.

“Everything that was in the film is in show plus we have so much more,” said Karl. “There is more plot, more dancing, more music.

“The film was only made on a £5million budget and I’ve spent more than that on every single stage production that we’ve done.

“The first production I was involved in opened in 2004 in Sydney and each time we’ve done it I think we’ve done a better job. That’s our job - we just keep making it better.”

Karl admits that the show’s popularity puts added pressure on him and the cast to deliver something special.

“People talk about a musical being a success if people walk in humming the tunes,” he said. “With Dirty Dancing they walk in humming the entire script and knowing all the dance routines. They know everything and there is a huge responsibility not to let them down.”

Karl admits he does not know how many times he has watched the show over the years.

“I’ve seen it over 50 times in the UK just on tour alone, he said. “That does not count the five years it was in the West End nor all the rehearsals and preview before opening night.

“But I’ve never watched it as an audience member. You always seeing something, not always with a critical eye. You can be seeing something and thinking ‘yes that does work.’ It’s just impossible to just be an audience member.”

After all this time with the show, Karl remains a huge fan.

“It can be a long slog at times,” he said. “There are moments when you are woken up at all hours with companies running around the world but when the show is in big theatres and gets to end and you have 3,000 people on their feet screaming, it’s a great feeling to bring that much entertainment and pleasure.

“I’m hoping that’s exactly what will happen in Blackpool.”

Dirty Dancing opens at Blackpool Opera House on Thursday, August 11, and runs until Tuesday, August 30, details from wintergardensblackpool.com. It will also be at the Palace Theatre, Manchester, from Monday, October 19 to Saturday, October 15, details from 0844-871-3019.