When I first began reviewing, I wavered on whether or not to critique educational theatre. I tended to make exceptions for Arizona State University, and especially for Lyric Opera Theatre, which consistently produced impressive and even exceptional productions. Two seasons ago, I found myself disappointed, and decided to forgo reviewing there last season. This season, despite their choosing to produce a show that I think is one of the worst scripts to ever become a hit, Grease, I was impressed with their choice for their Director and Choreographer, the talented Robbie Harper, and decided to give it another chance. It seems, though, that no matter how talented the helmer, a production of this awful script can only rise as high as the performers abilities. Despite a few excellent singers, some impressive dancing, and a couple of earnest performances, this is as sloppy a performance as I've seen from LOT.
There will be those who say that because I hate the script, I'll never like any performance, but that's not the case. Earlier this season, Harper choreographed a surprisingly good production of the same show for Valley Youth Theater that I did not review, but which I surprised myself by enjoying. For this production, though, Music Director Elizabeth Nantais has incorporated some revised orchestrations that actually hurt some of the singing performances, most notably that of Matthew Sopha, who, as Doody, trills his way through an awful interpretation of "Those Magic Changes" in a production number that is saved only for Harper's cute choreography. The design element is similarly lacking, with William H. Symington's modified (and literal) turntable set looking flimsy and performing shoddily. Claude Pensis' lighting depends much too heavily on a pink bubblegum hue, and suffers from no front area lighting, leaving the first two rows of major dance numbers to perform in the dark. Equally bad is David Temby's sound design, which has the performers microphones sounding like they are in an abandoned mine.
There are definitely several bright spots in this generally dismal offering. The best production number is "Greased Lightning," as Harper lets the testosterone flow liberally. Tina Pini has a beautiful voice, and plays Sandy's innocence well. Brandi Rose Bigley is a hilarious Frenchy. Meigan Stack has a nice edge as Rizzo. Christopher Ayres doesn't go too over the top as Eugene. Giana Lamanna is cute as Jan, while Erinjean Jewell is peppy as Patty. Bradley Burt is appropriately slimy as Vince Fontane. Others in the cast are passable. An example of a disappointing performance comes from Danny Rosario, Jr. as Danny, who just doesn't break out of the pack in terms of energy or vocal quality. Another is Chris Boggs, who bobbles the best number in the show as he croaks "Beauty School Dropout."
I remember a time when I was bowled over by the Lyric Opera Theatre's 1996 offering of Turn of the Screw. That's the nature of educational theatre, I suppose, since this is the place where students are meant to experiment and fail safely. A lot of my disappointment stems from having had higher expectations for LOT this season. Perhaps with the better material of Little Shop of Horrors at the end of the season, the company will triumph once more.
Production Details:
Grease Music, Lyrics and Book
by Jim Jacobs, and Warren Casey
Arizona State University
Lyric Opera Theatre
The ASU Evelyn Smith Music Theatre, Tempe
(480) 965-3398
November 16th - 25th, 2001