Grease is the Word, Have You Heard?
By Stan Jenson
About a decade ago, I looked at a list of the three longest-running Broadway musicals. They were A Chorus Line, Grease, and Cats – and I absolutely hated all three of them! What did that say about my taste? Could I ever survive as a theatre journalist? Was I really even actually a gay man if I couldn’t spot good musical theatre?
Late last year, I attended a touring production of A Chorus Line and had a delightful time. I still think its themes are a bit limited, but for the first time in many viewings, I actually got involved in the music, the dancing, and the characters’ stories. I attribute this to a combination of better microphones and lighting, and the fact that I can afford better seats these days. The fourth row of the theatre makes most shows sparkle more than they do from the fourth balcony.
Last month I attended a performance of the touring company of Grease, starring American Idol Taylor Hicks. If I had misgivings when I arrived, they were quickly swept away by one of the most energetic companies I have ever seen. The audience was surprisingly young, and they screamed like rock groupies when six chorus boys in tight chinos jumped out of their high school lockers singing, “Grease Is The Word,” dragging their combs through their Elvis pompadours. They were followed by six Pink Ladies with appropriately ratted hair and equally tight pants.
Even if we hadn’t seen the movie, most of us would know moments into the show that Danny and Sandy were going to end up together, but the ride is a whole lot of fun. The songs are bright and generally very short, the dancing full of energy and laughs, and the voices and sound levels are all first-rate rock & roll.
As for Taylor Hicks, he does a great job for the six minutes that he’s in the show. He plays Teen Angel, a dreamy vision who emerges from a giant ice cream cone in the second act, and who sings only one song before climbing back into the cone. Fortunately, Hicks sings a bit more during the curtain calls, chats with the audience a bit, and does a concert version of a selection from his new CD. Since he is very personable and finishes the show onstage alone, there’s a feeling that you’ve spent some time with him, even though hardcore Taylor Hicks fans will be disappointed if they think they are attending his concert.
It has been almost 30 years since I first say Grease on Broadway. I remember hating the drab green sets, had trouble hearing the lyrics, and thought the show very silly. I genuinely loved the current tour. In part, the sets are a lot brighter, the radio microphones and amplified band make the sounds much cleaner, and the touring company is fast, funny, and comfortable with their roles. And in part, I have much better seats these days. Still, I don’t think any force of God nor man could make me sit through another performance of Cats…..
“Grease” plays at Segerstrom Hall in the Orange County Performing Arts Center, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa, from April 28 through May 10. Tickets run $20 - $75, and are available at the box office, at 714-556-2787, or online at www.ocpac.org.