Grease On Broadway - An Ever Popular Musical Show
The only successful theatrical project by co-creators Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey saw the opening of Grease on Broadway at the Broadhurst Theatre on June 7, 1972. Five months later it moved to the Royale Theatre. It remained there for more than seven years, before moving yet again to the Majestic Theatre, where it completed its 3,388th record breaking performance on 13th April 1980 and then closed down.
On that date it became the longest running performance by a Broadway musical show. The record was to be broken later by A Chorus Line in 1990.
Grease was revived after 20 previews, by Tommy Tune on May 11, 1994 at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre on Broadway, where it completed 1,505 shows.
Another Broadway revival of the musical show opened on August 19, 2007 at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre in New York and where it is still running. All these statistics show how popular it was and it still is. Reading any number of reviews will also confirm this. Grease on Broadway in its 1972 incarnation was a musical production directed by Tom Moore. It got its name from the 'greasers', a working class youth subculture of the 1950s. These youth were known then as greasers because of their slicked-down hair. The music-interspersed story of Grease was based in the 1950s and revolved around teenage romance and dealt with social issues such as gang violence and teenage pregnancy. Love, rebellion, friendship, and class conflict or class consciousness were some of its themes. Sexual exploration during adolescence was also one of them. The musical style of Grease was reminiscent of the rock and roll fever of the 1950s. It celebrated doo-wop (rhythm and Blues based music) and other contemporary styles of the period. The show had a total of 26 songs in two Acts some of which became hits. The 1972 incarnation of Grease on Broadway received three awards and an incredible review. It bagged the Theatre World Award (Barbeau), the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Choreography and the Drama Desk Award For Most Promising Costume Design. It was also nominated for the Tony Awards for Best Music, Best Book, Best Actor in a Musical, and Best Featured Actor in a Musical. Further, it was also nominated for the Best costume Design, the Best Choreography, and the Best Featured Actress in a Musical. Its 1994 Broadway revival received the Theatre World Award. This incarnation also received three Tony Award nominations and two Drama Desk Award nominations. Many people were completely flummoxed by the surprising success of Grease. They tried in vain to explain its runaway popularity but were left clutching air. Musical theatre historian Stanley Green opined that Grease hit a raw nerve in people. In his view they could identify with the appearance and feelings and actions of kids of the influential and yet peaceful times during the 1950s. Today, you can still watch Grease on Broadway. Tickets for shows are available at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre where it is being performed.
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