Grease Live! is an American television special that was originally broadcast by Fox on January 31, 2016. It is a live televised remake of the 1978 film of the same name, executive produced by Marc Platt, written by Robert Cary and Jonathan Tolins, directed by Thomas Kail and Alex Rudzinski, and starring Julianne Hough, Aaron Tveit, Vanessa Hudgens and Carlos PenaVega.
Patterned on similar live television musicals recently produced by NBC, the production incorporated elements and songs from both the original stage musical and the 1978 film version of Grease, as well as additional songs that were not present in either. In an effort to emulate the "energy" of a theatrical setting, live audiences were incorporated into the production's stagings. Grease Live was broadcast from Warner Bros. Studios, utilizing two soundstages and the studio's outdoor backlot—the usage of the latter was notably affected by rain in the Los Angeles area on the day of the broadcast.
Critical reception was positive, with particular praise to the overall atmosphere and production style of the presentation, as well as the performances of the cast, particularly Hudgens as Betty Rizzo—the special was dedicated in the memory of Hudgens' father Greg, who had died from cancer one day before the broadcast. The special was nominated for ten Primetime Emmy Awards and won a total of five, including Outstanding Special Class Program.
History
Announcement and casting On April 28, 2014, Fox announced that it had partnered with Paramount Television to produce a live, three-hour televised adaptation of the 1978 musical Grease in 2015. The move came in the wake of similar live musical adaptations that had been produced by NBC, such as The Sound of Music Live! and Peter Pan Live!.
On January 17, 2015, Fox officially announced that Julianne Hough had been cast as Sandy and Vanessa Hudgens as Rizzo and that the special would air on January 31, 2016. Entertainment Weekly reported that the special had been delayed from its original target of Summer 2015 due to difficulties in the casting process. On May 28, 2015, it was announced that Keke Palmer would join the broadcast as Marty Maraschino, one of the Pink Ladies. On July 9, it was announced that Aaron Tveit would star as Danny Zuko in the live TV broadcast, and Carlos PenaVega would play the role of Kenickie. On September 30, 2015, it was announced that Carly Rae Jepsen, Kether Donohue, and David Del Rio would play Frenchy, Jan, and Putzie, respectively. On November 6, it was announced that Jordan Fisher, Andrew Call and Yvette Gonzalez-Nacer would join the cast as Doody, Sonny and Cha-Cha, respectively.
Production Director Thomas Kail envisioned Grease Live as being a "combination" of elements from the original musical and the 1978 film version of Grease. For instance, the production incorporated songs that were created for the film version, such as a performance of its theme song "Grease (Is The Word)" by Jessie J, "You're the One That I Want", and "Hopelessly Devoted to You", as well as songs that were exclusive to the stage version, such as "Freddy, My Love" and "Those Magic Changes". Kail explained that "very early on as I started imagining what this could be, talking to Marc Platt, our executive producer, and the folks at Paramount, one of the things we really were very focused on was trying to capture the spirit of both the original companies of Grease and that film that has left such an indelible impression on all of us. To try to honor that and pay homage to something that has moved us and we have such a great affection for, and then try to make our own version of it."
The production also contained several new songs including the original, "All I Need Is an Angel", which was written for the character of Frenchy (Carly Rae Jepsen) by Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey of Next to Normal fame. Joe Jonas's band DNCE made a cameo appearance as Johnny Casino and The Gamblers during the Rydell High dance where they performed The Crickets' "Maybe Baby", as well as a 1950s-inspired remix of their own debut single "Cake by the Ocean" in addition to "Born to Hand Jive" from the stage version and "Rock and Roll Is Here to Stay" which was previously only part of the film version. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Jonas explained that the band was approached by the producers for the role following a concert they had performed in New York City.
Grease Live was broadcast from Warner Bros. in Burbank, California, using two soundstages, half of its backlot, and 44 cameras. Set designer David Korins explained that the medium of a live, television musical would "really show off what theater does best, and also what film and television does best", having constructed a self-contained "cafegymatorium" set that is designed to provide an "immersive", 360-degree experience, as well as traditional theatrical-style stagings. Grease Live was presented to live studio audiences at each of the three filming locations, who were also directly integrated into relevant scenes as extras on-stage, such as in crowds. Kail explained that he wanted to capture the "feeling" of the audiences at live stage productions, as there was "an energy and an undeniable vitality that real humans give back to real humans that are performing". The Hollywood Reporter believed that the use of live audiences would help to stylistically distinguish Grease Live from the NBC live musicals that it was patterned after.
The price of a 30-second commercial during Grease Live was set between $300,000 and $320,000. Coca-Cola was signed on as a major sponsor of the special; the sponsorship included product placement of classic Coca-Cola signage and beverages within the special (such as on a vending machine and on the diner set), and sponsored social media content. In order to be appropriate for broadcast television and to appease advertisers, several songs were edited for content; Platt stated that his goal was to make Grease Live a "family-friendly" show, but still wanted to maintain "the appropriate edge" the musical required. Among the edits, "Greased Lightnin'" changed the lyrics to remove several profane and sexual words (edits that original songwriter Jim Jacobs had made to the officially licensed versions many years prior), while the Italian profanity "fongool" was replaced with "be cool" within "Look At Me, I'm Sandra Dee".
Weather issues The use of outdoor sets for portions of the production led to concerns that it could be affected by weather, especially in the wake of forecasts calling for a 100% chance of precipitation and possible thunderstorms on the day of the telecast. Kail stated that the production did have contingency plans in the event of rain, while Platt stated that his team had factored the possibility of rain into its plans for "many months", and that while safety was the highest priority, the show would still go on, rain or shine.
While prepared for the possibility of rain, wind was also a major factor: at around 3:00 p.m. PT, an hour before the telecast went live, Platt was informed that a particular structure on the outdoor set could not be used for safety reasons. By 3:40 p.m. PT, while the team was in the process of re-staging the opening number to exclude the structure, the rain and wind passed, and engineers cleared the use of the structure—allowing a return to the original staging. The broadcast would ultimately feature references to the conditions: emcee Mario Lopez jokingly introduced "El Niño" as being a "special guest", while the opening number, "Grease (Is the Word)", was performed with the cast holding umbrellas, and during a discussion about having a live broadcast at Rydell High, Principal McGee (Ana Gasteyer) quipped, "Let's just hope it doesn't rain."
Death of Greg Hudgens On the day of the broadcast, Vanessa Hudgens announced on Twitter that her father, Greg, had died of cancer the night before, and that she would dedicate her performance in Grease Live to his memory. Platt told Entertainment Weekly that he was "fiercely proud" of Hudgens' handling of the situation, describing her as a "very determined young woman" who "knows that the show has to go on, as any actor of the theater or in a live event knows. So she decided she would take her feelings of loss and sadness and put them in a box for that afternoon, that she would use them to fuel her performance and she would do it in honor of her father." Additionally, Fox and Paramount allowed the production to be dedicated in memory of Greg; Platt went on to say that "the cast was behind her and we all joined hands and said, 'We're going to live in this moment. Sometimes life interferes. But you have all worked so hard for this moment and we're going to go for it.'"
Cast and characters
Main cast Aaron Tveit as Danny Zuko, Sandy's boyfriend, leader of T'Birds, Rydell High's Greaser gang Julianne Hough as Sandy Young, Danny's girlfriend, relocated from Utah (this, her conservative values and sharing a name with Brigham Young imply a Mormon upbringing, much like Hough's own. In the film version, Grease, Sandy’s last name was Olsson, and had relocated from Australia in order to suit the original actress Olivia Newton-John), who transforms from square lady to female greaser over the course of the production Vanessa Hudgens as Betty Rizzo, leader of the Pink Ladies, archenemy of Sandy Carlos PenaVega as Kenickie, member of T'Birds, owner of the car Greased Lightnin', Danny's best friend and Rizzo's on-again/off-again fling
Pink Ladies Carly Rae Jepsen as "Frenchy" , Sandy's best friend, aspiring beautician Keke Palmer as "Marty" Maraschino, the Pink Ladies' resident sex kitten Kether Donohue as "Jan" , blunt and somewhat dorky
T-Birds Jordan Fisher as "Doody" Andrew Call as Sonny LaTierri, David Del Rio as "Putzie"
Special guests Didi Conn as Vi (Conn played Frenchy in the 1978 film) Barry Pearl as Mr. Stan Weaver (Pearl played Doody in the 1978 film)
Musical guests Jessie J as the title song singer Boyz II Men as the Teen Angels DNCE as Johnny Casino and the Gamblers
Other characters Mario Lopez as Vince Fontaine Ana Gasteyer as Principal McGee Elle McLemore as Patty Simcox Wendell Pierce as Coach Calhoun Eve Plumb as Mrs. Murdock Sam Clark as " Balmudo Yvette González-Nacer as Charlene "Cha-Cha" DiGregorio Noah Robbins as Eugene Felsnick Jon Robert Hall as "Tom" Chisum Haneefah Wood as Blanche Hodel
Ensemble
Carly Bracco Gregory Haney Harley Jay Chris Meissner Tiana Okoye Kayla Parker Dominic Pierson Cailan Rose
Personnel Musicians Tom Kitt – conductor, keyboards Brian Kilgore – percussion Dave Kendrick – lead guitar John Wilson – rhythm guitar Taylor Hale – bass Chad Timon – drums Isaiah Miller – piano, keyboards Lindsey Stirling, David Garrett – violins Laura Freeman – viola Joshua Alexander Sykes – cello Nick Payton, Kail Graham – trumpets Lil' Joey – trombone Ray Hanson, Kirk Sanborn – saxophones, flutes Arnold McCuller, Dorian Holley, Fred White, Emily Stevens, Kathy Gray, Siedah Garrett – vocals Bob Garrett – vocal director
Dancers Nick Baga Karen Chuang Janaya French Courtney Galiano Marko Germar Jeremy Hudson KC Monnie Haylee Roderick Brooke Shepherd Ade Chike Torbert
Soundtrack The official soundtrack album, Grease Live! (Music from the Television Event), was released on January 31 by Paramount Pictures. The Target edition, including four bonus tracks, was released on February 27. In the show, 23 songs were performed, but only 19 were included in the official soundtrack. "Alma Mater" (performed by Ana Gasteyer and Haneefah Wood) and "Mooning" (performed by DNCE) were not included in any version of the album. The album debuted at number 37 on the US Billboard 200, and topped the same week on the Top Album Sales chart.
Reception Critical reception