Grease has been off and on broadway since the early 70s and, after the performance I just saw tonight, I don’t think it’s ever going to cease to be “the word.” (OMGZ THAT WAS CHEEEEEESY)
Anyway, in case you live under a rock, Grease takes place in the ’50s and follows the woes and loves of a group of teenagers, centering on the innocent Sandy Dee and the rebel Danny Zuko. Needless to say, THEIR IS TROUBLE ON ROMANCE ROAD! (Srsly, if you’ve never seen Grease, message me so I can slap you.)
The precursor to the show was an interactive sing-a-long and dance fest with Grease character Vince Fontaine, played by Dominic Fortuna. I HATE this kind of crap and get annoyed when people try to make me sing and clap and do the twist, but um, the crowd seemed to enjoy is so I’ll leave this one alone.
I’m a recovering musical geek and I was VERY pleased with what I saw at this performance. Fun choreography, flashy sets and talented vocalists and actors. The show does a very good job of drawing you in from the onset. Oh, and the “Greased Lightning” scene kicked ass.
Eric Schneider, who plays Danny, and Emily Padgett, who plays Sandy, were spot on. I was honestly a little disappointed in Rizzo, played by Allie Shulz, but I think that’s largely because I’ve always wanted to play Rizzo and she didn’t play it the way I would have, or the way I’ve ever seen her played, for that matter, lol. She was still very talented, though.
Oh, did I mention Taylor Hicks of American Idol fame is in the show?! LOL. To be honest, I had only ever heard the name before because I don’t hate myself enough to actually watch American Idol. But I was impressed. And not because he has any kind of future in musical theatre, I HOPE. But because, if you’re going to shamelessly throw a celebrity into a show to try to sell tickets, it’s pretty fantastic to put that person in a minimal role that won’t taint the whole show but will still be enough to please the people who only came to see him. And that’s pretty much exactly what they did. Throw in an allusion to his American Idol fame and some harmonica action and you have a definite crowd pleaser for the kids who came to see hm and an inoffensive star citing for the theatre folks.
So seriously, I’d HIGHLY recommend you Columbus folk check out Grease, playing at the Palace Theatre through the 21st, and the rest of you check out the tour at a venue near you!
