Check out more of The Viking Vibe’s coverage of Grease:
The Pirandello Players took on the role of greasers as they put on a three day run of the musical, Grease, a romantic comedy film that takes place in the 1950s. The movie was originally released in 1978 and was later turned into a musical. The basic plot of this film is that a greaser (Danny Zuko), a member of a motorcycle gang, falls in love with a girl named Sandy Olsson the summer before high-school. However, they are yet to realize that they will attend the same school starting that fall. The rest is an adventure of drama and action that takes place between the two as viewers wait to see if they will end up together by the end.
Before attending the musical on its second of four showings, I knew about half of this information. I was excited and hoped to experience lively music and singing, drama, and suspense–and to say the least, these expectations were definitely met.
As the musical began, lights dimmed, and the characters were introduced. I think the entire first portion of the musical before the intermission, went well and was clear to understand. The story started off by presenting the main characters and the conflict they face after seeing each other at the same school. The main characters were portrayed by Emma Sava (’26) as Sandy Olsson and Spencer Capes (’27) as Danny Zuko.
Sava portrayed her character extremely well. She had spunk, a bubbly personality, and a sense of innocence. Because I was not familiar with the characters such as Rizzo, played by McKenna Caffery, (‘26), it was a pleasant surprise to see how immersed she was in her character. Not only did her curly wig add to the part, but she also had a perfect valley accent and attitude. Along with her, some of the main greasers performances like John Hashemi (’28) as Kenicki Murdoch and Ryan Santoro (’26) as Roger put themselves perfectly into the shoes of Rydell highschoolers with the classic slick back hair and leather jacket outfits.
Moving on to the main performances of the night, Sava had a remarkable performance of “Hopelessly Devoted,” originally sung by Olivia Newton-John. This scene and performance was extremely memorable because there was a simultaneous dance scene frozen behind her as she sang, showing a parallel between her loneliness and the dance she wanted to be at. The only person not frozen in place along with Sava was Spencer Capes–shown dancing with another girl. Another memorable performance came from Charlene Lieberman (’26) as Marty Maraschino in the song “Freddy, My Love” by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey. Her voice was powerful and sweet as she sang a song for her long-distance lover, Freddy.
A definite favorite of the night for me had to have been “Born to Hand Jive” sung by character Johnny Casino (Nate Ceballos (’27)). This song, sung by the majority of the cast, had the entire room instantly energized and humming along. It was the kind of song you’d want to get up and start dancing to. And I can’t forget “Beauty School Dropout” sung by the characters Teen angel and Frenchy, played by Angie Demarco (’27) and Adienys Ruiz (’27) respectively. I think this song, alongside many others, shifted the perspective to other characters in Grease which made each of them stand out in their own way. It was enjoyable to watch different perspectives of each character and their own struggles, rather than just the main characters.
The lighting and sound crew, live pit, and on-stage crew all helped to elevate the performance. The on-stage crew did perfectly. Each scene passed by like a movie without interruption or mistake in prop placement. The same can be said about the lighting and sound crew. Though sound is a difficult aspect and it’s normal for some corruption in audio, there were only a few noticeable issues. This usually happened when a mic could not properly pick up audio, which isn’t a big issue when their voice projection backs up the sound. Lighting was also on point. Lighting served as a major part of setting the mood to the musical as it fit every scene emotionally. The cherry on top was the pit of musicians. The pit played alongside each performance and transition that happened during the musical. It is a nice contributor to a live musical, much better than audio provided by speakers.
The musical was generally a lively and entertaining show and there are many factors that made this production a great success. Even though everything worked out, there was one thing that stuck with me at the end, and it had nothing to do with the Pirandello Players’ production. It was the fact that the storyline felt incomplete. After two hours of trying to figure out Sandy’s relationship with Danny, I figured that she had learned her worth and was going to prioritize herself. The scene that made me think this was possible was when Sandy appeared on stage with a new outfit and sense of confidence, as she walked out fully “greased” in black, with leather pants, and boots. This “glow-up” is what convinced me she had changed for the better. But it only took a few scenes after this to see that she did it to get back with Danny. This threw me off.
However, it’s completely reasonable for this storyline to exist when the film was made such a long time ago. The film itself was released in 1978 while the fictional time takes place in the 1950s. Compared to films released today, there are now better scripts and plots that are consistent with modern standards. You are less likely to see a character revert back to their original ways after going through lots of development. Especially when a character like Sandy receives disrespect from Danny throughout the film but still decides to stay with him.
Other than that minor issue, the musical production of Grease by the SBHS Pirandello Players was an amazing experience of romance and drama all the way down to the singing performances and choreographed dances. I can’t wait to see how the incoming seniors take on their next play and musical.
