Spike Tape’s 24 Hour Musical Delivers “Grease”

On Thursday, Oct. 8, from 4:15 to 10:15 p.m., a group of ambitious and theater-loving students gathered in the Jones room to audition for the 24-hour musical. Which musical was it? None of them knew. All they knew was, whatever role they landed, they would have 24 hours to master every line and perform at the Patricelli ’92 theater the following day. A daring feat, but Wesleyan students are no strangers to a good challenge (and a good all-nighter).

The following day, at 7:00 p.m., the candidates found out their parts for the musical “Grease: School Version.” The actors had no time to celebrate as they went off to the races. First, they learned the music, doo-wops and sha-booms galore. At 9:00 p.m., blocking and choreography work commenced. Three hours later, at 12:00 a.m., the actors and crew members took a much-needed break, but rehearsals continued as the night turned into day. At 1:00 p.m., on Oct. 9, the actors had their first run-through. At 4:00 p.m., they had several more run-throughs, this time with tech. At 6:15 p.m., actors went backstage to adorn themselves with their lovely 1950s leather-laden costumes, doll themselves up with makeup, or slick back their hair (with copious amounts of grease, of course). 

“Going into the 24-hour musical, I wasn’t expecting much at first, but we really got into it, having learned six songs in four hours and [moved] fast through it with fun choreo and the optimism of my castmates,” said actor Elijah Philip ’28. “While lack of sleep was a big part, it also was sort of enlightening to be that dedicated to the process of theater and art, a kind of experience I wouldn’t really have otherwise: fast, witty, fun, and open to mistakes and expression.”

As the performance neared, many excited students stood in the Patricelli lobby, eager to find out what the 24-hour musical was. Spike Tape put up an Instagram story featuring students predicting the show. Some predicted “Seussical;” others, “Mamma Mia.” But no one was right. As the throngs shuffled into their seats, director Aviella Kibel ’29 took the stage to free the audience from their anticipation.

When they learned the musical was “Grease,” the audience cheered rapturously as the lights dimmed. The greasers took to the stage, and the show began.

24 hours before, many of these actors didn’t know a single line or note from “Grease,” and now they were performing it live to dozens of their peers. Anxiety-inducing though the experience was, the performances were uniformly commendable. Charlie Manzano ’27 was hilarious and charismatic as the iconic protagonist, Danny Zuko, while Zarouhi Kuhn ’30 brought a multi-layered performance as his sweet-then-spicy love interest, Sandy Dumbrowski. Amelia Solomon ’27 gave a similarly sassy performance as sardonic Betty Rizzo, while Mira Herman ’30 delivered an effervescent performance as the pitiful but lovable “beauty school drop-out” Frenchy.

Maya Brenner ’30 displayed her belting skills in an extraordinary performance of the glamorous Marty. While Zoe Nagle ’27 dialed up the quirk for the goofy Jan, Kiran Schatz ’29 brought similar jocularity to his brilliant portrayal of Doody, and Simon Sidney ’27 gave a strong performance as Kenickie. Saul Ferholt-Kahn ’27 was hilarious as the trouble-making Sonny LaTierri, and Kaeden Falcigno ’30 showed off some incredible dance moves as the clownish Roger. 

Other fantastic performances included Philip as the crooning Teen Angel, Zeke Allman ’27 as the lovable nerd Eugene Florczyk, and Bre Jordan ’27 as the veteran English teacher Miss Lynch.

Rounding out the ensemble with exceptional energy and tenacity were Katie Emmer ’29, Cora Turk-Thomas ’30, and Audrey Jones ’30. The tech team was also brilliant, efficiently and effortlessly changing scenes to keep the play rocking and rolling, as the greasers would say. Another highlight was the complex choreography by Alana Slade ’29 and Madeline Ewing ’29.

As the play closed with the iconic anthem “You’re the One That I Want,” the audience rushed the stage, smiles on their faces. The cast and crew celebrated with equal zeal. 

“It was a really fun challenge to adapt my directorial vision to such a time-constrained process,” said Kibel. “I had a clear structure for the show, but took the opportunity to give the actors creative freedom to embrace the improvisational component of performing a show they’ve only worked on for 24 hours. Not knowing exactly what the final show would look like added to the fun of the process.”

Brendan Kelso can be reached at bkelso@wesleyan.edu.