Book, music & lyrics by Warren Casey & Jim Jacobs. Capitol Theatre. 24 Mar – 1 Jun, 2024.
If you’ve been subjected to shonky school productions and community theatre outings, you’ll be overjoyed to see Grease: The Musical be treated like a real, big, professional show once more. The hit songs, the knock out voices, the sharp choreography. When this production of Grease lets rip, it roars!
Two words best sum up my feelings about the new revival of Grease: The Musical – cognitive dissonance. It’s both incredibly enjoyable, and highly questionable at the same time. Somehow both those things stay true and don’t impinge on each other. The sexual politics are retrograde as all ****, but the show is jammed full of great tunes and remains a hell of a lot of fun.
The one thing this production has an abundance of is energy. The set (by James Browne) and lighting (by Trudy Dalgleish) mix stadium pop concert and theatrical megashow. Eric Giancola’s choreography channels the classic film while filling the stage with small moments for those who look around. Some of the scene changes are slow, but director Luke Joslin has peppered the stage with moments of teen life to smooth it out.
The young cast are sharp and focused (thank god for triple threats who can really belt out a tune AND hit a precise dance mark), and the ensemble turn their supporting roles into show stoppers. Doody (Tom Davis), Frenchie (Catty Hamilton), Roger (Andy Seymour), Jan (Caitlin Spears) and Cha Cha (Christina D’Agostino) all steal their scenes and threaten to run away with the show. Keanu Gonsalez’ Kenickie nails ‘Greased Lightning’ and shows depths I wasn’t expecting.
But the show has two real stars – no, I don’t mean Sandy and Danny.
The first is Mackenzie Dunn as Rizzo. Sure, it’s the best role in the whole show. Rizzo gets to play comedy, tragedy and snark as the tough leader of the Pink Ladies, but Dunn doesn’t rest on the material. She’s acting the **** out of every line. For a big glossy musical full of razzle-dazzle, Dunn is playing Rizzo like a complex human that happens to sing and dance with the best of them. She is magnetic.
And speaking of “the best of them”, ladies and gentlemen please make way for Marcia Hines! In a show of bright lights and constant motion, she holds the crowd with a raised eyebrow and a tilt of her head. You can also tell Hines is having a ball.
As for our romantic leads, Joseph Spanti makes a solid Danny Zuko. He’s less of a posing alpha male, and more of a hot kid who’s bouncing between his libido and his emotional immaturity. Surrounded by some frighteningly good musical-theatre tenors, he hits the high notes with almost suspicious ease (I did wonder if some portions were pre-recorded, it was that good). In the mix of all the big characters, sweet Australian Sandy (Annelise Hall) gets lost in the action. I was distracted by Hall’s makeup which was particularly draggy (Drag queen Etcetera Etcetera was in the audience and her makeup was more subtle), and her song delivery often felt more technical than emotive.
For all the backwards gender stereotyping though, the big lessons still ring true and prove why the show has remained so popular. Watching young people navigate their way through the problems of young adulthood, juggling sexual awakenings, education, independence and raging emotions is a pretty universal experience. This is a big, cartoonish extravaganza filled with fan favourite tunes. Hearing them at full force is an absolute joy – this is what big commercial musical theatre does best.
Cultural Binge 
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