The world according to “Grease”

31 Jan The world according to “Grease”

The Sheridan Arts Foundation's Young People's Theatre stages "Grease" at Telluride's Sheridan Opera House, Feb 6-8

Hindsight is not always 20/20. Sometimes it needs glasses.

When Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey penned "Grease" in 1971, Americans were nostalgic for the white picket fence days of the 1950s. But the innocence of that era was largely fiction: the headlines of the Eisenhower years included Communist witch hunts, polio, the hydrogen bomb, the Korean War, and racial segregation.
Pop culture was all about Mitch Miller, Elvis, James Dean and "Rebel Without a Cause," doo-wop and Doris Day – but also Jack Kerouac, who wrote "On the Road" in 1957. To the road warrior and his legions of fans, America of the 1950s seemed to be many flavors of strange under a white-washed veneer of pristine sameness.

The authors of "Grease" chose to sanitize those realities and dress them up in poodle skirts and leather jackets. The world of "Grease" never existed and always existed.

Who could ever forget a first love? A first rejection? A crisis of self esteem? Getting your first car? Making out? Attending a prom? The coolest guys in the class? The girls who "put out" like Rizzo. The girls who said "no," like Sandy.

"Grease endures because the trials and tribulations of teen years are universal and unforgettable. Youthful exuberance – expressed in songs like "We Go Together," "Beauty School Dropout," and "Born to Hand Jive" – is never out of date.

Jen Julia, director of the Sheridan Arts Foundation's Young People's Theater program, decided to celebrate her 10th anniversary by reduxing three of greatest hits. For her high school students, a musical about the triumphs and struggles of high school students was a natural.

"Grease" is the word. It's a gas….

Cast (In order of appearance)

Miss Lynch……………….Devin McCarthy

Eugene Florczyk………Celine Wright

Patty Simcox……………Mia McLaughlin

Chorus:

Jacqueline Child

Olivia Coflin

Taylor Fortenberry

Ciara Green

Naomi Major

Marina Marlens

Molly Mitchell

Alexa Posner

Frances Rogers

Jessi Solomon

Jan……………………….Kenya Johnston

Marty…………………..Alexis Cruzzavala

Rizzo……………………Emma Gross

Doody………………….Jonas Fahnestock

Roger…………………..Max Walker-Silverman

Biff………………………Creek Thompkins

Sully…………………….Wendy Torres

Bobby…………………..Yann Bayon

Kenickie………………..Keegan Fairfield

Sonny…………………..Willy Hess

Frenchy………………..Erin Thompson

Sandy…………………..Brittany Altman

Danny…………………..Walker Hollrah

Vince Fontaine……..Austin Altman

Jenny Casino…………Xanthe Demas

Teen Angel……………Charlotte Delpit

Angelette………………Emma Anderson

Angelette………………Nina Gerona

Performances are February 6 – 8, 6 p.m. nightly. Tickets, $12 adults/$10 children.  Children 12 and under. Lap children are free. Tickets are available at the Sheridan Opera House Box Office, Monday – Friday, 10 a.m.- 4 p.m. , by phone at 970-728-3707, or online at www.tellurideticket.com. 

For further information, call 970-728-6363.