Grease

 The 1978 (UK 1979) film was voted the most influential of the 20th Century and anyone of my age will tell you that it played an important part in some aspect of their life. It is a film I can watch every time it pops up on television and never be disappointed with any part of it and yet, it was only last year that I saw my first stage production. It was an amateur presentation and almost inevitably, I was a little disappointed. Chris Dilley is an incredible Director and the whole DOSYTCo set up sits comfortably with me as a fully inclusive youth company with all ages and abilities embraced. This means you always get electricity because everyone on stage is having the time of their life. If it then transpires that the chosen title is disappointing or the talent base is weak it is still uplifting and energising but. ….. when the talent pool is rich and the direction red hot …. OMG! So … all to play for as I took my seat in a sold out auditorium at Dereham’s own masterpiece, the Memorial Hall.

The first, the very first thing to say is the scenery (I heard someone say Scenic Projects but I could not find anything in the programme … ) was outstanding with the car (Greased Lightning) everything you could have hoped for. Complimentary lighting (Ashley Cashfield) and sound (Kyle Fuller) were both bang on the money … every time. The video sequences, whilst a little out of context (see below) were well done and well delivered. Costumes, (Michelle Blanks) and makeup and wigs (Sophie Blanks) were all excellent  (see comments below regarding Rizzo’s wig) with superb hair (Natasha Wilson-Gotobed) and props (Pennie Jones) that were perfection!

 I am not going to lie to you … the worst thing about youth productions is the whooping …. I am no stranger to the whoop myself, but just whooping at your friends and family because …well, they are your friends and family .. is a little wearing. However, the party atmosphere in this theatre for this show ….  meant I could forgive anything. The cast was vast .. really vast and the chorus were so important to the assorted stories and sub-plots taking place in and around them. I would say that having so many performers on stage so much of the time did limit the opportunities for complicated dance moves but whilst the moves themselves were simple, the impact was great as this very enthusiastic and focussed ensemble worked tirelessly to bring it together.

In the supporting roles there was a good showing from Beckie Mantle, Ellie Mason, Kathryn Mason and Emily Scarlett as the supplementary Pink Ladies, with a perfect balance from Charlie Barrett, Thomas Wilson Gotobed, Adam Jones, Frankie Mazzei and Louis Miller as the additional T-Birds. Thomas Wilson Gotobed once again stole every routine with the sort of precision and focus you would be surprised to find in an 18 year old and he is very much younger than that (10/11), and it was impossible not to watch him any time he was on that stage! The use of smaller boys as complimentary T-Birds was an excellent idea and worked perfectly. Esme Findlay and Esme Pitman (no really!) were in fine form as the Radio voice and Joseph Reed put in a good shift as band leader Johnny Casino.

In the more prominent roles Declan Matwij brought plenty of comedy to the role of radio DJ Vince Fontaine, and, one of the few conundrums I had to deal with was why we kept seeing video of him, when he had been declared as a radio DJ? It wasn’t a big problem, he was great and the video was well presented. Joseph Chapman also worked hard with his portrayal of High School nerd Eugene Florczyk with Charlotte Bunting making a lovely job of Rydell’s Headmistress, Miss Lynch.

These kids grow up so quickly I can never be sure if I have seen them before but Ellie Mason’s name rang a bell … and her performance as dance- off ringer Cha Cha DiGregorio was everything it needed to be. In the slightly more important (to the story) roles, Josiah Blake was all about as T-Bird, Sonny and Harrison Matwij (you can trust the name) managed to turn a medium part into a big part with his fantastic performance as Doody. Mr Matwij Jnr. managed to find laughs where there were none, and made the small laughs side-splitting with some perfect comic timing. Every rewrite of this musical always leaves in Roger Rump (re-named Putzie for the film)  …. and rightly so. This time out the part was taken by Tom Jones (you really can trust the name) who was perfectly cast and delivered a wonderfully measured performance that stuck in my mind all the way home .. and beyond. I absolutely loved Amy Wynton as conforming Patty Simcox, although this version gave her a bit of a back story and a bit of an edge. Miss Wynton was perfection from her first entry to her last exit and I enjoyed the bigger part this character played in the various love stories going on around her.

I almost saw Ollie Ludman in Wyrd Sisters but sadly his education got in the way (if you know what I mean) but his swaggering, over-confident characterisation of bad boy T-Bird, Kenickie, lacked nothing and that leather jacket …. seemed like a second skin!  An odd thing did happen in this production. Elliot Hunter who had been in and around the cast suddenly disappeared and reappeared as Teen Angel with what is supposed to be a one song cameo. Mr Hunter however managed to turn this into one of the highlights of the show. Not just a superb singing voice but a crowd- pleasing delivery that very, very nearly stole the show.

It is only right that the Pink Ladies get the bigger part of Grease. After all, the story has always had a female perspective, but what a trio of talent they were. The smaller of the parts is Jan and Sophie Chapman made a lovely job of everything she was involved in, most importantly her relationship with Roger. I found this liaison credible and rather charming thanks to her (and his) performance(s). Next up was Frenchy, which is a role that has to be handled with care. Maisie Dolman was completely at ease with the crisis Frenchy goes through about her future and turned a throw-away part into a masterpiece. Which of course means that the pressure was very much on for the amoral Rizzo, who is the biggest character as leader of the Pink Ladies. She has the best song in the show, all the best lines and the most liberated character… what can I say? Jess Biggam completely nailed it! Her delivery of “There Are Worse Things I Could Do” could have been taken straight to the West End and her acting (particularly in the picnic snog-a-thon) was remarkable!  My only criticism … the wig! … I loved everything else!!!

In the two pivotal roles of Sandy and Danny, Emily Baker and Alfie Mazzei were delightful together. In this version of the show, Sandy is rather relegated to a bit part but there was no way that Emily Baker was going to stand for that. Without even a hint of overacting she managed to stamp her authority on every scene and used what little time the script writers had given her to sell the love story between the good girl and the bad boy that is the backbone of this musical. As T-Bird Danny Zuko, Alfie Mazzie got a lot more time for character development and, with a superb singing voice and a brilliant characterisation, I really felt I knew and understood the character at the end of the show. His rendition of “Sandy” and the both of them in “Summer Nights” carried things to a new high!

Penultimate paragraph honours were never easier to award and, in a show, with a cast where everyone seemed to be turning in the best work of their careers it is really something to say that as Pink Lady, Marty, Olivia Dolman was completely in a class of her own. She never stopped acting even when the focus was elsewhere, she never tried to steal anyone else’s moment, but simply turned it up when it was needed .. and turned it down when it wasn’t. Believe me, you don’t see performances like this very often and it was a privilege to have been there to view this one. The song, “Freddy My Love” was one of the highlights of the show. Miss Dolman … awesome !

My very sincere compliments to Director, Chris Dilley and his crew for bringing it all together and to such an unbelievably high standard. The direction was very nearly faultless with Musical Direction from Helen Cowie and Choreography from Jodie Quirke that was not only good, but good for this cast, on this stage, in this show! The 5 piece orchestra under the direction of Dave Cowie were also top-notch and, as I drove home to King’s Lynn, I really thought that those who dedicate themselves to youth amateur dramatics could learn a lot from this group … in fact adult amateur dramatics could probably do the same.

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