The class of Ryedell ‘59 is having a reunion as Mrs. Lynch welcomes everyone back. The choir sings The Alma Mater, and the story flashes backward to the T-Birds as the curtains rise….

The Musical “Grease,” follows two groups of high school seniors, the Pink Ladies and the T-birds. The seniors journey is filled with raunchy romance, songs and their trials and tribulations of high school. 

According to Theater teacher Rachel Cain, the opening scene of the Musical “Grease,” will be hard to capture in the sense that it is the first scene. 

According to theater teacher, Rachel Cain, the opening scene plays a important role to grab the attention of the audience. 

“There’s a lot going on, a lot of moving parts, a lot of people crossing to and from class, a lot of props and lights. The first thing in the play is you always have to set the tone, you have to set the energy and meet the audience because it’ll be different every night,” Cain said. 

Jack Hancock, a sophomore who plays the Teen Angle and Vince Fontaine, said the hardest part of the production is dealing with COVID-19.

A couple of cast members and I had COVID, so it’s been a thing that kind of hit some people in the cast and it made it difficult to learn a few things in the show,” Hancock said. 

For senior Scarlett Jones the biggest struggles have been the dancing choreography as well as singing. 

“I am not very much of a singer, nor am I a dancer, I tend to stick to just acting because that’s what I’m best at, but this process the choreographer has made it very easy for me to get to know the choreography,” Jones said. “ Mr. Circle, our vocal director, and the choir teacher here has really helped me with my songs and has helped everyone with the music so it just goes to show you cannot be in choir, you cannot be in theater, you cannot be a dancer, but you can still participate in the musical and all of these plays.” 

These challenges however, did not stop the cast from having fun. The cast made sure to meet as many other students in the play as possible and share their interests.”

“It’s very fun to see the people that are coming into this department,” Jones said. “The new freshmen and people just bring so much talent to the table and especially after COVID last year. I didn’t participate in the musical and I didn’t get to meet any of the now sophomores, and now I’m getting to know them and they’re incredibly talented. So it’s been very fun to see and recognize all the new talent that’s coming into our department.”

Miguel Cornwall, who plays Kenickie (main character Danny’s best friend), said the most fun part of the musical has been playing a character who is very different from himself. 

“[I like] Kenickie because of his charisma, and  he’s a very outgoing guy, which I’m not. I’m more secluded, so getting to play someone who is the opposite of myself has been fun,” Cornwall said. 

This musical has been special for the cast, but for opposite reasons. For underclassmen, it will be their first high school musical, and for seniors, it will be their last.  

“It’s really my first high school musical, like a mainstage musical at the high school. I’ve watched my brother do shows here for four years, so I’ve always wanted to get up on that stage,” Hancock said. 

“It’s my last senior musical. I am not really pursuing theater or singing or anything like that in the future, so this is what I think will be a memorable time,” Jones said. 

Cain believes that the musical will bring back memories to the parents who grew up with the musical “Grease.”

“It’s iconic. A lot of the parents of the current students grew up with it. So I would say it’s returning to something from childhood, something filled with joy, something familiar,” Cain said. 

The musical will be performed at the Performing Arts Center from Feb. 3-5 at 7 p.m.