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<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"
class=MsoNormal align=center><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">‘Grease’ thrives
despite those magic changes<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns =
"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p></SPAN></B></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"
class=MsoNormal align=center><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></B></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"
class=MsoNormal align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Bob
Abelman<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"
class=MsoNormal align=center><I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">News-Herald,
Chagrin Valley Times, Solon Times, Geauga Times
Courier<o:p></o:p></SPAN></I></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"
class=MsoNormal align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Member,
International Association of Theatre Critics <o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"
class=MsoNormal align=center><I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></I></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><SPAN
style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">This
review appeared in the <I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">News-Herald
</I></SPAN><SPAN
style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">5/14/10<B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><o:p></o:p></B></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><FONT size=3>Let’s not kid ourselves.
<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>When talk turns to Broadway
classics and theater royalty, neither the musical <I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Grease</I> nor anyone associated with it are
part of that conversation.<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><FONT size=3>From the get-go, in 1972,
<I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Grease</I> was little more than a fun,
slightly raunchy spoof of life in high school in the 1950s.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>The 1978 film version of the musical,
starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John, thrust the show into American
popular culture, which sent it on a trajectory toward glitz and pageantry from
which it has yet to return or recover. <o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><FONT size=3>A long-running Broadway
revival that opened in 1994 offered a revolving-door of celebrity appearances,
including Richard Gere, Patrick Swayze, Brooke Shields, Sheena Easton and Rosie
O’Donnell.<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><FONT size=3>For the 2007 Broadway
revival, NBC offered a 12-week reality TV program called <I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Grease: You’re the One that I Want</I>,
where the winners of a national talent competition assumed the lead roles in the
production.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><FONT size=3>So, it should come as no
surprise that the Broadway tour currently on the Palace Theatre stage at
PlayhouseSquare includes a cameo appearance by <I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">American Idol</I> winner Taylor Hicks, has
had several songs from the film added to the playlist, and has sanitized the
lyrics in the original songs.<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Nor should it come as
a disappointment.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Grease</I> always was and continues to be a
simple, superficial, feel-good romp that demands nothing from its audience save
that it sit back, suspend disbelief, and enjoy the ride.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Expecting more than a good time from a
show whose lyrics include “chang chang changity chang shoo bop, that's the way
it should be, wah-ooo, yeah” is expecting too much.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><FONT size=3>No, <I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Grease</I> is not classic theater or great
theater or important theater.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>But
it has the potential to be an absolutely delightful and highly entertaining
piece of theater if the cast and the production crew deliver the goods with
unabashed enthusiasm and top-notch professionalism.<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><FONT size=3>The national touring
company does just that, in spades.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>Despite the fact that Cleveland is the end of the road for this tour,
this production’s ensemble of performers has shown up eager to please, brimming
with vitality, and loaded with talent.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>From the romantic leads, played by the wonderful Lauren Ashley Zakrin and
Josh Franklin, to the supporting characters, to the specialty dancers, everyone
has bought into what <I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Grease</I> is all
about and they don’t hold back.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>Everything about the production—the exaggerated, color-saturated scenery,
the brazen choreography, the broad acting—is overproduced and absolutely
appropriate. <o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><FONT size=3>Does the addition of
Taylor Hicks add to the quality of this production?<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Heaven’s no.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>In fact, it detracts from it, for he has
no stage presence during his one musical number, “Beauty School Dropout,” and
his very presence on the stage is woefully out of context and distracting.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>However, he brings star-quality and box
office draw.<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><FONT size=3>Does the addition of the
film’s songs “Hopelessly Devoted to You,” “Grease,” “You’re The One That I Want”
and “Sandy” enrich this production?<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>Not really. <SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>In fact, they
demand a comparison with the film version. <SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>However, these songs are immediately
recognizable and have the audience singing along. <SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><FONT size=3>Does <I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Grease</I> lower the standards of what a
Broadway show and a Broadway touring company should offer?<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Perhaps.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>But while the original production of <I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Grease</I> never won a Tony, it was the
longest running show in Broadway history when it closed.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Although the NBC weekly competition may
have cheapened the profession by giving away lead roles to amateurs who had not
earned their Actor’s Equity stripes, the TV program drew 90 million viewers.
<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p><FONT
size=3> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">There
is one moment in this production where one of the gang is learning to play the
guitar and has managed to generate four awkward cords.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>As he plays “Those Magic Changes” for
his friends, his simple performance morphs into fantasy and the boys find
themselves in dramatic lighting, glittery clothing and performing magnificently
before adoring and appreciative fans.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">That’s
</SPAN><I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Grease</SPAN></I><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">
in a nutshell.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Grease</SPAN></I><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"> continues through
May 23 at PlayhouseSquare’s Palace Theatre.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>For tickets, which range from $10 to
$70, call 216-241-6000 or visit <A href=""><FONT
color=#004276>www.playhousesquare.com</FONT></A>.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P></FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>