Gangs. Theft. Alcohol. Teen pregnancy. Some catchy tunes. It's no
wonder that Grease is one of the longest running musicals
in Broadway history. And, while the actors in this year's Theatre
Under the Stars production look a little clean cut, the show offers
a fun evening for the entire family – if mom and dad don't
mind explaining some mature subject matter, that is.
While leads Gaelan Beatty, as Danny, and Tracy Neff, as Sandy, do
a formidable job as the young lovers separated by their differences
– Danny's a greaser and Sandy's "wholesome and pure"
– the standout performances come from the supporting cast.
Robert Markus, who plays awkward T'Bird gang member Doody, has one
of the best voices in the troupe; Louisa O'Keane is wonderful as
the slutty Marty, one of the Pink Ladies; Andrew Cohen, as Teen
Angel, takes the role Frankie Avalon made famous in the movie version
and makes it his own, with great singing and a lot of physical humor;
and Nicole Stevens, as the head Pink Lady, Rizzo, gives an emotionally
honest rendering of the song "There are Worse Things I Could
Do" (than get pregnant accidentally).
The physicality of the whole show is fantastic. Everyone hams it
up, making it just campy enough. And the choreography by Alex Pesusich
and Kevin Tookey – and its execution, in such numbers as "Born
to Hand Jive" – is something to behold. Back flips, splits
and other challenging moves are deftly handled by the performers.
The sets are also effective and efficient: one of the schoolyard's
brick walls and chainlink fences, when turned around, becomes a
bedroom, for example. The two walls and fences, with a set of bleachers
in the middle, are the schoolyard. Two sets of lockers with framed
pictures above them evoke the school hallways.
Unfortunately, the lighting causes some problems in a couple of
scenes. In one, the stage lights reflect off the framed photos and
distract from the acting. In another, the headlights of the T'Birds
soon-to-be-refurbished (with stolen parts) car are turned on and
then left on during "Grease Lightnin,'" with a literally
blinding effect. The audience directly in front of the car, even
rows back from the stage, misses seeing that whole song and dance
number.
But, on the whole, Grease is "the word," to play
on one of the show's song titles: it's energetic and full of strong
performances. One can also coin one of the show's lines in recommending
it. Frenchy consoles Rizzo, who might be pregnant: "It ain't
so bad, Riz. At least you know what you'll be doing after graduation."
Well, after seeing Grease, you'll know what you'll be doing:
you'll be heading back to your car singing.
– Cynthia Ramsay
Spirited hoedown on stage
Oklahoma! was the first musical created by the now-legendary team
of Richard Rogers and Oscar Hammerstein II, whose other celebrated
works include Showboat and South Pacific. It opened
on Broadway in 1943, with choreography by Agnes de Mille and a cast
of virtual unknowns – and went on to become a huge hit.
The musical is set in Oklahoma in 1906, and centres around the rivalry
between cowboy Curly McLain and farmhand Jud Fry for the attentions
of farmgirl Laurey Williams.
Theatre Under the Stars' decision to mount Oklahoma! as one
of its musical productions this year was serendipitous, given that
this is the 100th anniversary of the founding of the state. Indeed,
an official proclamation from Oklahoma governor Brad Henry was read
aloud at opening night to a small sea of cowboy hats – including
that atop the head of music director and conductor Wendy Bross Stuart.
The fading golden light among the trees of Stanley Park was a natural
complement to the pale glow across the farmhouse on stage during
the opening number, "Oh What a Beautiful Mornin'," performed
by recent musical theatre graduate Mat Baker, in the lead role of
cowboy Curly.
In fact, Gerald King's lighting, Francesca Albertazzi's set design
and Chris Sinosich's costumes were a real highlight of the production.
Set changes were performed with the cast all still on stage. "I
want all this cleaned up lickety-split," declares Kimberly
Page as Aunt Eller, and hey presto, the little house disappears.
"Surrey with the Fringe on Top," another song from the
opening act, had performers using yellow parasols for wheels and
a carpet held aloft as the "fringe," while the opening
sequence in Act II featured a red barn, yellow dresses and a turquoise
"sky" in a jewel-like combination.
It seemed to take a little while for the cast to settle down, perhaps
because it was opening night. Some of the script's built-in chuckling
and giggling seemed a tad nervous at the beginning, and there were
a few fumbled lines. Nor are southern accents that easy for Canadians
to master. Some of the female cast members, too, seemed to be sporting
rather too much make-up and over-bright hair.
Visually, the famous ballet dream sequence at the end of Act I is
stunning, with a pink mist over the forest, strutting, black-shirted
men and burlesque-clad women. Jayme Armstrong, as Laurey, came into
her own here, too, expressing emotional turmoil without ever saying
a word. But the dancing ... ouch! This is community theatre, and
no one is expecting Evelyn Hart. If you're going to perform "ballet,"
however, you have to at least try to point your feet a little, not
clomp leadenly around the stage.
Overall, Armstrong possessed strong acting ability, particularly
in the scene in Act II where she has to toughen up and defend herself
against Jud, but her voice seems very operatic, even shrill, at
times. Baker, appearing at TUTS for the first time this year, held
his own with a solid voice and a genuine aw-shucks presence –
but the real stars of the show were secondary characters.
By far the strongest voice and characterization of the night belonged
to Capilano College musical theatre instructor Kevin Michael Cripps.
As downtrodden farmhand Jud, Cripps balanced a sense of menace with
gruff bafflement and a tone that reflected genuine sadness –
especially in "Poor Jud is Daid," where he has a strong
interplay with Baker.
Studio 58 acting student Melissa Oei charmed the audience with her
portrayal of ditsy farmgirl Ado Annie. Channelling her inner Paris
Hilton, Oei expertly captured her character's endearingly giddy
persona. She was also among the stronger dancers in the cast.
Ryan Egan had a very dodgy Middle Eastern accent but was nonetheless
uproariously funny as the devious peddlar, Ali Hakim, who narrowly
escapes nuptials with Ado Annie only to find himself in the clutches
of an even dippier dame later in the show.
The real joy came in the finale, when the entire cast came together
to perform the title song, which happens to be Oklahoma's state
anthem. Its lyrics, applauded loudly by the audience, also echo
our final thoughts about this show: "And when we say –
Yeeow! A-yip-i-oo-ee ay! We're only sayin' you're doin' fine, Oklahoma!
Oklahoma – OK."