My Review of Grease-18th June 2008
Grease is one of my all time favourite musicals and I have been to see the stage version many many times and I an avid fan of Ray Quinn for many years I was very excited to see this version too,and I wasn’t disappointed.
Ray plays the youngest T Bird Doody,Doody is the T-Bird with the biggest smile,they kindest heart and is in awe of all his T- Bird friends.The role of Doody was made for Ray,he has all the boundless energy and personality that makes you instantly drawn to him whenever he is on stage.From the minute the cheeky charmer enters the stage in Grease Is The Word you are captivated by his energy.Ray’s standout performance came in Those Magic Changes which was,for me,the show stealer of the night!!Ray’s faultless vocals and energetic dance rountines (Ray’s pelvis has a mind of it’s own!!!)showed what a great talent this young man is,and i’m sure he has a brilliant future ahead of him.The extra dance sequences chreographed especially for Ray’s portrayal of Doody made good use of Ray’s dancing skills.Ray also has amazing comic timing and brought a great sense of Comedy to the role of the hapless,love struck T-Bird.
Danny Bayne as the Danny Zuko,put in a good performance and it is easy to see why he won the coveted role,as his vocals are strong throughout (especially in key solo Sandy)Danny also connects well with the audience,and his years of ballroom and latin dancing are brought to notice in the dance scene at the prom,with Cha Cha(Kristina MacMillan)
The role of lovestruck teen Sandy Dumbrowski is played by newcomer Nicola Brazil,who plays the role of Sandy well,although at first her portrayal is some what different to others I have seen,I soon became used to her slightly more aggresive portrayal,Nicola’s vocal range is amazing and her solo number,Hopelessly Devoted To You,shows of off her vocal range at its best.
Other cast members worthy of mention are Natalie Langston who plays leader of the Pink Ladies tRizzo.her strong acting skills are visable for all to see as Rizzo struggles with her feelings over her mistaken pregnancy.There Are Worst Things I can Do,showcases Natalies amazing vocals and it is clear she sings from the heart.
Jason Capewell as the comedic Teen Angel is a real crowd pleaser with his sometimes camp rendition of Beauty School Dropout,he has the audience in stitches.
As a whole new cast has alot of talent others worthy of mention are Stuart Ramsay(Kenickie),who’s version of Greased Lighning is popular with audiences,Kristina Macmillan(Cha Cha) is an amazing dancer and her portrayal of rough as nails Cha Cha is worthy of note.