'Grease' opens Thursday at MLHS
CHERYL SCHWEIZER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 7 years, 5 months AGO
Cheryl Schweizer/Columbia Basin Herald Sandy (Karlye Shank, right) introduces herself to the Pink Ladies in the Moses Lake High School production of ‘Grease,’ opening Thursday.
Cheryl Schweizer/Columbia Basin Herald Danny (Mark Fedorchuck, center) and the T-Birds survey the scene at Rydell High in the Moses Lake High School production of ‘Grease,’ opening Thursday.
Cheryl Schweizer/Columbia Basin Herald Danny (Mark Fedorchuck, center) and the T-Birds talk about what happened over the summer in the Moses Lake High School production of ‘Grease.’ It opens Thursday.
Cheryl Schweizer/Columbia Basin Herald Sandy (Karlye Shank, standing) learns some shocking information in the Moses Lake High School production of ‘Grease,’ opening Thursday.
Senior Reporter Cheryl Schweizer is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience serving small communities in the Pacific Northwest. She began her post-high-school education at Treasure Valley Community College and enerned her journalism degree at Oregon State University. After working for multiple publications, she has settled down at the Columbia Basin Herald and has been a staple of the newsroom for more than a decade. Schweizer’s dedication to her communities and profession has earned her the nickname “The Baroness of Bylines.” She covers a variety of beats including health, business and various municipalities. | October 30, 2018 3:00 AM
MOSES LAKE — The ultimate high school musical comes to the Moses Lake High School stage starting Thursday. “Grease” opens for a two-weekend run at 7 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and continues at 7 p.m. Nov. 9 and 10. Matinees are scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday and Nov. 10.
All performances are at the high school theater, 803 E. Sharon Ave. “Grease” has been adapted for various audiences and casts, and the MLHS production uses the high school-friendly version.
Other plays may call themselves high school musicals, but “Grease” started it all. ”It’s relatable,” said lead director Sabrina Haesche. It might be 1950-something at Rydell High School, but some problems of high school are eternal.
Danny Zuko (Mark Fedorchuck in the MLHS production) is the toughest of Rydell's tough guys as the new school year starts. But there’s this girl, Sandy Olsen (Karlye Shank), that he met over the summer. Sandy is starry-eyed over this boy she met, but she worries she’ll never see him again; in the way of musicals, little does she know he’s at the same school.
What happens when and after they meet again is witnessed (and commented on) by Danny’s buddies in the T-Birds, and Sandy’s occasional friends in the Pink Ladies – well, Rizzo (Rachel Law) is in the Pink Ladies, but she can’t really be described as a friend.
“Grease” is a musical about high school, but it’s a Broadway show and that means complex staging – lots of singing and dancing, elaborate costumes, musical numbers and sets. The cast, approximately 30 actors, is supported by about 30 people in the technical crew and eight volunteer directors.
Sharon Winningham is the assistant director; D Jay Kendall is the technical director, Evelyn Brown and Emily Duvall are the vocal directors and Danielle Boss is the choreographer.
Tickets are $9 to $12, depending on show dates and seating, and can be purchased online at our.show/mlhs/grease.
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