From Nov. 3 through Nov. 5 Grease will be the word. The Sun Valley Community School Players will bring the timeless classic to the stage with more than 30 Upper School students bringing one of the world’s most popular musicals to life.
Grease had an eight-year run on Broadway, two subsequent revivals, along with too-many-to-count school and community productions. For those not familiar, the musical is set at Rydell High School, 1959. Duck-tailed, hot-rodding “Burger Palace Boys” and their gum-snapping, hip-shaking “Pink Ladies” in bobby sox and pedal pushers evoke the look and sound of the 1950s in this rollicking musical. Head “greaser” Danny Zuko and new (good) girl Sandy Dumbrowski try to relive the romance of their “Summer Nights” as the rest of the gang sings and dances its way through such songs as “Greased Lightnin’,” “Hopelessly Devoted To You,” and “Sandy,” recalling the music of Buddy Holly, Little Richard, and Elvis Presley that became the soundtrack of a generation.
Says Director Kevin Wade ‘06 (who is also doing set design and carpentry), “Grease is not only a classic musical and a household name. Yes, there will be T-Birds and Pink Ladies. Yes, Greased Lightning will ride again. Yes, audiences will recognize all the music and doubtless must bite their lips in order to keep from singing along. But the real reason that this show is a perfect choice for us is the accessibility of the characters, their closeness in age to our performers, and the similarity of the issues they deal with to those high school kids deal with today.”
Wade added, “It doesn’t always work out this way, but I think young performers are most successful when they’re playing characters their own age. It’s the same reason that Romeo and Juliet is the most accessible Shakespeare play to students. It’s a bunch of young folks running around dealing with young folk stuff. It hits a little heavier than most people will remember — students are dealing with appearance issues and dysmorphia, peer pressure, the pressure to conform to others’ expectations. We’ll be leaning into all that and leaning heavily into the fact that at its core, Grease is fun!”
Danny Zuko will be played by Charlie Coulter, Sandy Dumbrowski will be played by Rose Bicas-Dolgen and Elyse Duffield plays Rizzo and Paisley Shapiro plays Frenchy. Other Upper School students in the cast include Etienne Blumberg, Elizabeth Dahlen, Katie Gardiner, Sydney Lovering, Lizzie Loving, Phoebe Everett Williams, Cassius Klingenfuss, Luc Gilbreath, Brady Giles, Steven Serva-Gonzales, Ida Belle Gorby, Bridgette Silva, Addie Parmenter, Aster Pitts, Callan Duke, Hadley Duke, Riley Siegel. Students working tech behind the scenes include: Tyler Salvoni, Koa Mott, Carter Hickey, Kyan Gandhi, Thor Roberts, Cash Ammons, and Middle School student Moi Bicas-Dolgen.
Tickets will go on sale one week before the production. Ben Larroquette ‘05 will serve as music director, Megan Mahoney will serve as choreographer and vocal coach, and Sara Gorby will head up costume design and properties design.