Upper School Performs “Grease” With Landon
- Kate Rudge '26
- Mar 18
- 2 min read
With classic rock ‘n’ roll music, teen romance, rivalries and so much more, what’s not to love about the musical “Grease?” This winter, Holton and Landon students collaborated to put on a
rendition of the beloved musical on February 28 and March 1.
Preparing for a musical is time-consuming. Auditions for the show took place in early December, and ever since, actors have been in rehearsals four days a week.
Among a number of musical ballads and dances, a few particular songs stood out to the cast. “Summer Nights,” a classic number in which Danny and Sandy detail their summer romance to their
friends with comedic differences between their tellings, kicked off the
production.
Another hit was the song “Greased Lightnin’.” Elaborate stage designs accompanied the number as the character Kenickie and other Burger Palace Boys fantasized about transforming a beat-up car into a dream car.
El Barrett Toman ’26 played the role of Jan, an enthusiastic member of the Pink Ladies. In advance of the production, they commented, “My favorite part of the musical is how high spirited it is, especially since it’s about high schoolers. It feels like we’re all just friends hanging out onstage and we can add real life experience to our characters.
Barrett Toman continued, “Any version of ‘Grease’ you see is a little different from each other, but I think the biggest difference that the Holton/Landon team has brought on [compared to other Grease renditions] is establishing the changes in character.
“You can clearly see how both Sandy and Danny grow throughout the show, and we are attempting to physically represent that with clothing and aesthetics.”
Journey Stenerson ’27, who attended Saturday night’s show, said that it “felt like [she] was watching the real movie.” She added, “I am so glad I could support the students who participated in Grease and applaud their hard work.”
