Grease, the autumn student musical, was an unqualified success, drawing great crowds and enthusiastic praise from both students and adults in attendance.

Directed by Cotter math teacher Mark Roeckers, the play featured a well balanced cast, eye-catching set design, and creative choreography to produce a show that appealed to the wide age range of the audience. The show played the weekend of November 2-4, with Friday and Saturday evening shows, and a Sunday matinee.

The Friday audience seemed to be the liveliest, according to both cast and director. “The crowds were very reactive on Friday and Saturday, but a bit quieter on Sunday. That is pretty normal for a matinee performance. It was a large and very reactive crowd on Friday. I’ve heard nothing but positive comments in response to the show,” said Roeckers.

The stage version of the show differs slightly from the 1978 movie starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton John, that many people know.

Mr. Roeckers noted, “The challenge of the show was trying to make it a bit more “family friendly” than the script portrayed.  We changed a bit of the dialogue so it was not quite so harsh.

I was very pleased with the performances.  I thought that the cast really got into their roles and had a fun time on stage.”

One aspect of the aspect show that stood out for some was the athletic and diverse dance routines the cast performed. Mr. Roeckers had some assitance in creating these numbers.

“The choreographer for the show and several of the prior shows was Paul Ebner. I think he does a great job with choreography making it fun and is able to work with the ability levels of the students very well,” Roeckers said.

Colette Penic and Jake Kiese excelled in the lead roles of Sandy Dumbroski and Danny Zuko.

The Pink Ladies, Frenchy (Rosemary Flanagan), Marty (Patricia Ambros) , Jan (Molly Corcoran-Sanders), and Betty Rizzo (Julia Charron) featured strong voices and sassy attitudes.

While the T-birds (Doody (Caleb Forst), Sonny (Cleveland Brown), Roger (Alex Walechka), and Kenickie (Tristan Penic) brought energy to both their songs and dances.

Two other standouts were David Moon as the Teen Angel, and Brynn Spitzer as Sandy’s rival Patty Simcox.

The set featured images of James Dean, Elvis Presley, 50’s era Coca-cola logo, Mickey Mouse and a great “greased lightning” hot rod.

Senior John Grattan saw it Friday night. “I liked that it was a well known story, I was impressed with how well they did in front of a big crowd.”

Cast of GREASE the musical:

Miss Lynch……………………….. Stephanie Roberton 

Patty Simcox……………………….. Brynn Spitzer 

Eugene Florczyk…………………….. David French 

Jan…………………….. ……………Molly Corcoran-Sanders

Marty……………………………..….. Patricia Ambros 

Betty Rizzo…………………… Julia Charron 

Doody…………………………………. Caleb Forst 

Roger…………………………………. Alex Walechka 

Kenickie…………………………. Tristan Penic 

Sonny LaTierri…………………… Cleveland Brown 

Frenchy…………………………….. Rosemary Flanagan 

Sandy Dumbrowski………………….. Colette Penic 

Danny Zuko………………………….… Jake Kiese 

Vince Fontaine……………………….. Daniel Parlin 

Johnny Casino………………………. Kyle Schneider 

Cha-Cha DiGregorio………………. Kelsey Charron 

Teen Angel…………………………… David Moon 

CHORUS:  Corey Beyer, Claire Brendel , Amanda Havener, Jane Koll, Leah Koll, Kristina Makoova, Calli Marg, Missy Meng, Maura Michener, Renae Ramsden, Alex Schell, Mary Schwend 

Ms. Tara Welch – Pit Director/Piano

Sam French  – Saxophone 

Thomas Graner  – Saxophone 

Logan Hein  – Drums 

Sam Price  – Guitar 

Nick Theisen  – Bass 

Allisa Marek-Spartz – Stage Tech

Andrea Speltz  – Stage Tech

Ben Gabrych – Stage Tech

Katie Grover – Stage Tech

Kaitlyn Carlson – Stage Tech

Alex Strelow  – Light Tech

Tyler Suman  – Sound Tech

Mr. Mark Roeckers – Director

Mr. Paul Ebner – Choreography, Posters

Mrs. Maureen Marek – Costumes

Mariya Swanson – Costume Asst.

Jenny Kiese – Set Painting

Judy Richter – Program

Box Office Manager – Jack Petry