There are few nostalgia-heavy musicals that have had the track record of Grease. While many fans are quick to express their love for the John Travolta-Olivia Newton-John movie, there’s something to witnessing the original show with a crowd of like-minded individuals. From The La Mirada Theater, there’s an immediate awareness of how much this show means to many of the 50-something crowd, riding high on memories. Some wear Pink Ladies jackets while others are likely to be caught singing along with the actors. Overall, it’s not a phenomenal story, mostly embodying the youthful aimlessness of the 1950s, but for those who can put aside that feature, it becomes a romping good time.
The story remains familiar to anyone who’s sung “Summer Nights” passionately with their friends. Greaser Danny (Ryan Reyes) meets goody-two-shoes girl Sandy (Jenna Lea Rosen) one summer and is surprised to learn they attend the same school. More than the film, the plot from here is superfluous, mostly focused on meandering conversations in various hangout spots. Sitting in a luncheon or the park allows for the characters to express their love for others while having a cheeky and rebellious level of frank sex talk. Some of it comes across as humorous because of the perceived age of the characters, where the naivety ties into a desire to grow old while also not being ready at all for it. It’s a show that gets by on the gimmicks, allowing rude behavior such as car thievery and solving problems with snotty gossip and fights are the law of the land. It all leads to a fairly anticlimactic Act II, but when done right it’s an entertaining ode to yesteryear.
This can also be seen with the stage work. While minimalist, there are noteworthy figures like James Dean painted onto the walls, creating further implicit attachment to the era. This is a shamelessly nostalgic production to the point that a DJ performs a pre-show set reminiscent of Wolfman Jack. Everything is tongue in cheek, where the signs glitz with the bright colors, and the costumes feel designed for supreme tackiness. It’s a time of pure artifice, where nobody really has the right answers but the complicit desire to act like they do overwhelms. It’s by no means a smart musical, but it does at times hypnotize in other ways. The dumb characters are still allowed to have profound emotions, capturing a sincerity that more intellectual shows could lack.
For those who are coming to the show less because of its quality and more as a chance to witness a cherished soundtrack, then this show will be good enough. Everyone else may struggle to see the larger appeal because of how much substance feels lacking. The cast has the enthusiasm to at least try to make the flat material have a sense of personality. However, it’s difficult to really say that anything about the show is exceptional. Even the iconic “Born to Hand Jive” feels lacking in the potential for a great dance number. While there’s a great awareness of placement for the cast on the stage during these active scenes, Grease doesn’t necessarily have a great and memorable dance number, which feels disappointing. It has movement and keeps one engaged, but it all feels stilted and limited.
This could just be a side effect of the movie being unfortunately leagues better. Maybe it’s also that it added so much more to make these characters interesting. However, it makes one wonder how much coattail riding this show has done over the decades where it never quite feels as satisfying. There’s a blueprint here for something genuinely interesting, but at this point, it’s a show best viewed as a jukebox playing the hits, where the story is less important than whatever energy the singers can put into “We Go Together.” For those who know the hand movements by memory, there’s a good chance this show will go down smoothly. Even then, one has to wonder why they couldn’t have done a better job of making this high school fantasy feel somewhat more fantastical.
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