Last Friday afternoon, I had the chance to go along with the media team to Teatro Litta and watch our very own school musical production of Grease. Though the tickets did seem a bit expensive at first, the money did go to a good cause and the performance did not let me down. All the actors and singers were exceptional and although there were a couple of problems with the microphones, everything was handled very professionally.

The musical started off with the whole cast on stage singing Rydell High’s anthem. This gave the audience a chance to work out who was playing which part and as soon as it was over, the school’s “rebels” pushed everyone off and started singing their own version of the anthem. This gave the piece an entertaining atmosphere and it was clear right from the start that the audience was enjoying it.

As we were introduced to the main characters (Sandy and Danny) who were played by two of our most talented Year 12’s; Eva and Christian, I could feel the passion they were putting into their performance and I could tell that they had practiced very hard. Their belting out at the end of “Summer Nights” was very popular amongst the audience too and made them hungry for more.

The next scene moved onto the female side of our cast at the sleepover. Here we were introduced to Rizzo (Emma), Frenchy (Alessia R), Marty (Ginevra F) and Jan (Paloma) and we got the chance to hear Ginevra sing about her beloved boyfriend in “Freddie my love”. Then the scene changed once again, focusing this time on the male side of the cast. Kenickie, who was played by Federico P, and the rest of the T-birds performed “Greased Lightening” as they brought Kenickie’s old car back to life.

Throughout the rest of the first half, we were introduced to more and more characters like the cheerleaders (Carolina, Camilla R, Giorgia G and Matilde B), Eugene (Giovanni A) and the eccentric teachers (Mrs. Oxley and Mr. Williams).

When the lights were switched back on for the interval, there was a big groan from the audience and it was clear they couldn’t wait for more. The second half was also a big hit with the audience and I must say the best scene was the prom scene.

The ending was just like the film, very cheesy. Everybody came onstage and danced to “We go together” which the audience stood up and clapped along to as well. Of course, this was not all. Members from the audience all around me shouted out “More! More!”

The cast seemed exhausted and they still had another performance that night but this did not stop them from singing whatever the audience demanded during the encore. They sang “Greased lightening” and “Born to hand jive” and after that the audience finally gave up. They had a final curtain call and then it was all over.

Overall, I think that Grease was a total success! The performance of the entire cast, back-up dancers/singers and band members was astonishing. I really did not expect it to be so amazing and I guess that’s all thanks to Mrs. Warringer, the director. None of this would have been possible if it was’nt for her.

If you didn’t manage to buy a ticket to the show or just didn’t have the time to go and see it, make sure you free up your schedule for next year’s school production because I promise that whatever it is, it will not let you down!