It first exploded on to the stage in 1971, was made into a box office movie in 1978 and now the hit musical Grease is being brought to Whangarei.
The show, which touches on themes that are still relevant today - teenage pregnancy, gang violence, love, peer pressure, friendship and teen rebellion - is the next musical being produced by the Whangarei Theatre Company.
It is the first day of school, 1959 and Rydell High is filled with rebellious, thrill-loving students (The T-Birds and the Pink Ladies). Thrown suddenly into this chaos is Sandy Dumbrowski, the new girl in town. It turns out that she and the leader of the T-Birds, Danny Zuko, had a brief love affair the summer before. When the leader of the Pink Ladies, Betty Rizzo, realises this, she decides to reunite the two lovers.
Although at first excited to see Sandy, Danny soon rejects her to protect his macho image. Teased by Rizzo and the Pink Ladies, Sandy struggles to belong. Danny attempts to apologise to Sandy many times but always manages to screw it up. Alone on the night of the big dance, Sandy thinks about Danny, while he wins the dance contest with another dancer, Cha-Cha DiGregorio.
Meanwhile, Rizzo has begun dating Kenickie Murdoch (second-in-charge of the T-Birds) and frets about a possible pregnancy to him. Eventually Sandy gains more self-assurance and transforms herself into a Greasers dream girl. She is finally accepted by the Pink Ladies and reconciles with Danny.
Company president Ian Grant says Grease rehearsals are well under way and, with its diverse mixture of familiar and new faces, the show is taking shape nicely.
