Grease

The iconic number, ‘Grease is the Word’ was a great opening for a lively introduction to the young company of South Yorkshire Performance Academy (SYPA).   The experienced Production Team including Ashley James as Director/Producer, Danyl James as Choreographer/Vocal Coach and Andy Collis as Musical  Director should be commended on bringing forward young people in various roles within the Creative Support Team as well as dedicated Assistants to the Choreographer.

The Pink Ladies characterised their individual roles with ease.  Rizzo (Josie Derbyshire) drew on the insecurity and aggression of the character as leader of the Pink Ladies.  Derbyshire and the girls had great fun mocking Sandy in the number ‘Look at Me, I’m Sandra Dee’. Her solo ‘There Are Worst Things I Could Do’, was very strong.  Kate Walker as Marty led the girls in ‘Freddy My Love’ and really captured this character with a mature ease.  Carlie Collinson as Jan ably partnered Roger in ‘Mooning’ and totally grasped the comedic element of this role.  Taylor Dimmock as Frenchy with her quirky, ditsy characterisation brought both humour and empathy to the part.

Kenicke (Jake Grantham) had the right amount of edge and attitude playing this loveable rogue.  His strong vocals and moves were on display as he fronted the popular musical number ‘Greased Lightnin’, which demonstrated what a talented group of young men are performing with SYPA.  Cole Blakeley as Doody led ‘Those Magic Changes’ and joined by T Birds including Sonny (James Ware) showed the boys could both sing and dance.   Bobby Miller as Roger gave a great solo moment in ‘Mooning’ and Miller totally entered into the fun, cheeky side of this role.

The perfectly cast Sandy, (Abigail Lawrence) really shone in the role.  She had a wonderful innocence, but transitioned with ease to the sassy and attitude loaded Sandy we see at the climax of the show.   Lawrence played the part superbly, her rendition of ‘Hopelessly Devoted to You’ was outstanding as well as emotional – an excellent portrayal.  Playing Sandy’s love interest Danny was Jacob Crofts.   Crofts won the audience over with his strong vocals in ‘Summer Nights’ never faltered in his solo, ‘Sandy’, which tugged at the heart-strings of the audience.

The supporting roles Patty (Abbie Beazley) and Eugene (Lennon Sewell-Joynes) deserve special mention for their great portrayals as do Travis Jones playing charmer Vince Fontaine and Ruby-Lili Badger as the officious Miss Lynch.  Jasmin Daly played Cha Cha with a superb edge and Amelia Shaw did well as Johnny Casino.

The dancing was excellent throughout and the routines really allowed the confidence, technical ability and enthusiasm of everyone on stage to come through.

The cast all displayed a high standard of vocal ability.  From all the well-rehearsed soloists, duets, high school students, waring gangs, lively cheerleaders and ensemble created a production of back-to-back hits with strong harmonies.   Of particular note were ‘Beauty School Dropout’ (sung by Leah Keen as Teen Angel) and ‘Sandy’ (sung by Crofts).  The Academy’s Vocal Coach, Danyl James, had worked with the vocalists to introduce different vocal styles and varied the interpretation from the score.  Without changing the band parts this brought some originality to the presentation and was much appreciated.  The band featured on stage throughout (high above the stage) and the eight members excellently supported the cast under the direction of Musical Director, Andy Collis.

The Scenic Projects set was perfect for the stage and show.  It was moved with confidence by cast and crew to keep the production tight.  Costumes, which had been produced in house, were appropriate to the period and allowed the performers to move with ease.  Hair, wigs and make-up were great and props were to a particularly high standard (the burgers looked good enough to eat!).  Sound (provided by MA Acoustix) was very strong particularly for opening night as was lighting (CHL Theatrical).

Congratulations to everyone involved in bringing Grease to the stage including the Cast, Production Team, Backstage, Front of House and the many volunteers who support SYPA – a great evenings’ entertainment.

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