Worldwide triumphs stalk Pinoy Grease

The current success of musical theater, no matter how old and dated, is apparently undergoing an unprecedented revival worldwide as well as in the Philippines. This is perhaps why after almost 20 years since the musical Grease was performed in Manila, Nine Works chose it to close its 2013 season.

The back story behind the dramatic success of Grease, whether book, motion picture or play, is one that started simply enough. Friends and co-creators Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey were said to be drinking beer at a party sometime in the ’70s, questioning the type of musicals being shown then. “What do you think if we re-create a musical from the ’50s?” one asked, “And bring back the glory years of Elvis and rock ‘n roll,” replied the other, “and call it Grease in allegiance to the slicked-back greased hair” that was in vogue at the time.

The inspired team worked on the story, lyrics and music and brought it to an experimental theater in Chicago for showing on Feb. 5, 1971. The story set in 1959 at the fictional Rydell High School follows a gang of teenagers as they clash with one another. In the Philippine setting, we would quickly think of boys’ school Ateneo and neighboring exclusive all-girls’ school Maryknoll in those days.

The experiment in Chicago led the creators to off-Broadway, then to Broadway until it became one of the longest-running shows on Broadway at the time. The New York Daily News called it “a lively and funny musical, as well as the dancing-est one in town.” From our research, we followed its trail from 1961 Chicago, 1962 Broadway, 1978 the Hollywood film version, as well as various other revivals until today’s 2013 Manila staging. Having never had the opportunity to watch Grease, we are excited about this prospect.

Most Pinoys — with the American movie brainwashing — are familiar with the movie version Grease starring John Travolta as Danny and Olivia Newton-John as Sandy, which is said to have become the highest-grossing movie-musical ever. It has also broken records in DVD sales. This makes us wonder, why this worldwide appeal? Why not West Side Story, our forever favorite dance-musical of lovers living on opposite sides of the tracks?

When the movie West Side Story won 10 Academy Awards in 1961 that was during a Hollywood era when movie musicals regularly garnered such acclaim. It starred Natalie Wood as the Puerto Rican Maria, Richard Beymer as her American lover Tony, Rita Moreno as her friend Anita and George Chakiris as her brother Bernardo. It tells of a love story that ends in tragedy.

In Grease, the movie, archetypal bad boy Travolta falls in love with Newton-John, an Australian good girl through and through. The Romeo and Juliet romance between them is captured in the earnest and lighthearted fun of teen movies from the actual ’50s meshed with the big hair and glamour of the ’70s.

Leading the Philippine cast of the theatre play Grease is TV and stage star Gian Magdangal as leader of the T-Birds Danny Zuko, and singer-actress Frencheska Farr from The Next Big Star and Emir the movie-musical now as Sandy Dumbrowske of The Pink Ladies. Rafa Siguion-Reyna is T-Birds’ second in command. The last to audition, this 23-year-old six-footer is the son of Bibeth Orteza and Carlos Siguion-Reyna. Other Pink Ladies are MYX VJ Iya Villania, Jennifer Blair-Bianco and Romanian Carla Dunareanu.       

The Philippine production is headed by Santi Sta. Maria as executive producer and Robbie Guevarra as director. It has a cast of 18 which includes the Teen Angel special guest at each shoe. Grease The Musical will run Nov. 8 to Dec. 1 at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC, Makati and will include songs from the hit movie not in the original stage play like Hopelessly Devoted To You and You’re The One That I Want. Grease will have Friday, Saturday and Sunday galas at 8 p.m., Saturday matinees at 3:30 p.m. and Sunday matinees at 4 p.m.

(E-mail comments at [email protected].)