BROADWAY SNAP-SHOT
by Russell Bouthiller

Dateline: September 18, 2007

GREASE

Over the past summer, New York Magazine ran a cover story which detailed the ups and downs for reality show contestants whose season had come to a close. What happens to all those creative talents after months of daunting competition and bruising elimination rounds? Do their careers skyrocket or is it back to the drawing board? The title of the article, "Fame Over," pretty much says it all for most. Still, some of these players have used their 15 minutes to rack up a few more ticks of the clock.

Case in point: Max Crumm and Laura Osnes, winners of this past season's "Grease: You're the One That I Want," NBC's entry into the uniquely 21^st Century reality TV genre. The director of this latest GREASE revival, two-time Tony-winner Kathleen Marshall, along with producer David Ian and composer/author Jim Jacobs hosted the 12-week-long televised auditions. Aspiring singer/dancers from near and far battle it out for this once-in-a-lifetime chance to become Broadway's next Sandy and Danny. In the end, America voted.

With books, music and lyrics by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey, GREASE, this adorable 1950s high school musical occupies a secure niche in the pantheon of American theater. Holding the record for the longest running musical until A CHORUS LINE surpassed it, GREASE has proven a cash cow for its original investors and creative team.

The 1978 film version starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John was also a huge success with four new songs added and a couple of smash hit singles as a result. A 1994 Broadway revival directed by Jeff Calhoun ran for over 1500 performances and touring companies have been pumping money for decades. With such widespread name brand recognition, GREASE has proved the American theater's version of Coca-Cola.

This latest GREASE combines the additional Barry Gibb, John Farrar, Louis St. Louis and Scott Simon songs from the film with the Doo-wap ditties from the original score. Opening with Gibb's "Grease" (It's hard to fathom that a title song should come from the movie), the energetic company burst onto the stage of the Brooks Atkinson Theatre with pep and zeal. Honorable mention goes to Kirsten Wyatt as the perky Frenchy and Matthew Saldivar as the brooding Kenickie.

Laura Osnes passes handily as the demure Sandy Dumbrowski and Max Crumm's Danny Zuko registers well on the likeability scale. And with all the media exposure from the TV show, the potential for huge receipts at the box office should carry this class for a few semesters. GREASE, the high school musical that never seems to fail.