25
Feb, 2018
Meet the Cast: “Grease” Opens on April 18
[Posted February 25, 2018] The cast of Uni’s upcoming production of Grease is set and the show is being widely anticipated on campus. No wonder: it’s one of the most popular musicals in production across the country. Although originally written in Chicago in 1971, with specific ethnic references to that city, it is best known from Paramount’s 1978 film that starred John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John as Danny Zuko and Sandy Olsson (Sandy Dumbrowski in the musical) in their senior years at fictional Rydell High School. The Uni cast:
- Eugene Florczyk, played by Allen Tehrani
- Miss Lynch: Akila McKenzie
- Patty Simcox: Heidi Laubach
- Danny Zuko: Justin Javedanfar
- Sandy Dumbrowski: Claire Hafteck
- Betty Rizzo: Jasmine Mentzer
- Frenchy: Roscoe Upton
- Marty: Akira Shelton
- Jan: Maribel Solis
- Doody: Nathan Lam
- Kenickie: Cole Kelley
- Sonny LaTierri: Ethan Serrano
- Roger: Kevin Flores-Luna
- Johnny Casino/Teen Angel: Guillermo Hercules
- Vince Fontaine: Vic Brown
- Cha-Cha DiGregorio: Odina Cabrera
- It’s Raining on Prom Night Radio Star: Sarai Benitez
- The Pink Ladies: Jennifer Alvarez, Sarai Benitez, Amber Durham, Nuhamin Fekade, Lucie Hafteck, Stephanie Marroquin, Alexah Moller, Karla Ponce, Monica Solano.
- The Burger Palace Boys: Cristian Benitez,Jorge Manzo, Giovanni Molinaro, Gerson Orellana, Jonathan Orellana.
Uni’s Director of Theatre Arts, Ronnie Sperling ‘76 notes that the upcoming production will reflect the original, edgy musical by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey, with a special nod to the film at the end. Sperling himself has a special connection to the show: he played Eugene Florczyk – the class nerd – in a national touring company version during the early 1980s.
While it’s Sperling’s first version of Grease at Uni, it’s the third time the show has been produced on campus: first in Spring 1993 – making April the 25-year anniversary of the first campus production – and again in 2009. The 2018 shows are scheduled from 18-21 April at Stivelman Theater on campus. Tickets are now on sale online here.