Greased lightning

A&E editor Kelli Ringeisen reviews the Chanhassen Dinner Theater’s newest production, Grease.

Greased+lightning

On March 29th, I got the opportunity to see my favorite musical live at the Chanhassen Dinner theater. Ever since I was eight years old , I have loved Grease because of its catchy songs and entertaining story line.

When my parents and I arrived at the theater at 11:00 am, we were greeted by a peppy hostess dressed in the iconic 1950’s style; a poodle skirt and ascot. She led us to our own personal booth to be served a delicious dinner and to enjoy the show. The entire wait staff was decked out in ‘50’s attires, from leather jackets to red lipstick. From the minute we walked in, there was motown music playing, which really made me excited for the show. Shortly after entering, our waitress arrived at our table, offering us rolls and getting us beverages. We were given menus with a few items to choose from. I ordered one of my favorite dishes, lasagna. Surprisingly, we were served our meals very quickly. The lasagna was fine, but nothing too special.

At 1:00 pm, the long awaited show began. Once the classic characters came onto the stage, I knew it was going to be a fantastic show. From Frenchie to Sonny, the iconic characters fit their roles to a T. After a few minutes, one of my favorite songs started, Summer Nights. Sandy and Danny shocked the audience with identical voices to Olivia Newton John and John Travolta, the original actors. After the duo was finished singing, I wasn’t nearly as impressed with their acting as their singing. This was a disappointment, since they are the stars of the show.

Although I still loved every part of the rest of the show, I was especially impressed with the fierce pink lady, Rizzo. Not only was she a phenomenal actress, her voice was absolutely mesmerizing. When she sang her solo song, “There Are Worse Things I Could Do”, I fell in love with her. Honestly, I liked this Rizzo better than the Rizzo in the original movie. From this part of the musical, it continued to get better. When the Beauty School Dropout scene started, the audience was curious to see who the angel was going to be. The dazzling angel appeared and blew the crowd away with his spectacular voice. After the scene was done, the crowd was roaring with excitement. In the movie, this scene was entertaining, but not nearly as marvelous as the Chanhassen theater’s production of Grease.

The dazzling angel appeared and blew the crowd away

— Kelli Ringeisen

After the musical was finished, I continued to sing the songs all afternoon. Overall, I was very impressed with Grease. Although Sandy and Danny weren’t as perfect as the original couple, the rest of the show was exceptional. The actress who played Rizzo was extremely talented and the rest of the side characters fit their roles really well. However, my absolute favorite part was when the angel stole the show. Even though the angel is a small part, he definitely proved the fact that there are no small parts in shows. I would recommend to anyone who is fellow Grease fan to go see the show at the Chanhassen Dinner Theater..