Scarlet May 24th, 2022
According to Grease it's got groove, it's got meaning - but do the critics agree? The production of Warren Casey's and Jim Jacobs '50s musical directed by Nikolai Foster officially opened at Lodnon's Dominion Theatre on May 17th.
With a cast featuring Olivia Moore as Sandy, Dan Partridge as Danny, Peter Andre as Vince Fontaine and Jason Donovan as Teen Angel (at certain performances); it has all the names, but does it go together like rama lama lama ka dinga da dinga dong?
"Despite the energy of the dancing and the gyrating pelvises this seemed a remarkably un-sexy show...but for an audience looking for escapism, familiarity and a show that makes no demands (except upon the eardrums), it could well fit the bill."
- Howard Loxton, British Theatre Guide
"Grim is the word. This version of the beloved 50s-set high school musical has a hard carapace of professionalism but underneath it's colourless, charmless, and emptily energetic"
- Nick Curtis, Evening Standard
"Nikolai Foster's production is brightly entertaining and blasts out room-filling energy in its big dance numbers by choreographer Arlene Phillips, with tight formations of sharp, rhythmic 50s motifs"
- Lyndsey Winship, The Guardian
"Peter Andre, if vocally under-powered, is surprisingly good fun as the Elvis-aping DJ and fantasy Teen Angel. It helps that he's essentially in on the joke, sending up his own cheesy persona and incongruous presence in this professional musical theatre cast. "Beauty School Drop Out" is a highlight thanks to its camp, witty staging, with an angel whizzing in on a scooter and mannequin doll heads paraded around".
- Marianka Swain, London Theatre
"From underneath a fathom-deep tan Andre emits a cuddle-worthy likability while throwing Elvis-inspired shapes. Yet elsewhere there is very little about this show to like."
- John Nathan, Metro
It seems you either love it or hate it, a bit like Grease 2 the movie.
Have you been to see Grease at the Dominion Theatre? We'd love to heard what you thought. Be sure to leave a review on the page and it could be featured in our next Grease newsletter!
