Greased Lightning!
Grease was one of many excellent films I watched at an inappropriately early age. Like Dirty Dancing, Ghostbusters and Mannequin, the songs from Grease are happily embedded in my cellular memory. So when The Cassettes and I heard the Bruns Picture House were showing the film on June 24, we got excited!
Released in 1978 and set in the late 50’s, Grease tells the love-story of Sandy: a pure and wholesome Australian exchange student, and Danny: owner of the best chin-dimple at Rydell High.
The most successful musical-movie ever made, Grease is an explosion of sexuality, singing and dancing, swirling skirts and glistening chrome. Ears are pierced, cigarettes are gagged on and streamers sway innocently above the hot to trot Born to Hand-Jive dance scene. Gosh I love that scene.
I always found Sandy’s transformation a little soul crushing though. To fit in and find true love, she changes; into leather pants.
Let us instead view Sandy’s transformation in Grease, as an exploration of Jungian archetypes: Here Sandy can be seen portraying The Innocent and The Rebel. Jung reckons we all have a canary yellow Sandy, and a Greaser girl hanging out in our collective unconscious.
No doubt there’s a Pink Lady and a T-Bird in there too.
Summer Nights on a winter’s eve in Brunswick Heads
Only 3 things could make a screening of Grease at the restored Brunswick Picture House even more enjoyable:
- Heavily buttered popcorn
- Dressing up with your friends in your favourite 50’s outfit
- Watching The Cassettes’ automatic, systematic, hydromatic Grease mega-mix dance piece!
Byron Bay Flashmob Troupe teacher and choreographer Katy Woods, has done an electrifyin’ job of creating a unified, rollicking dance ride with The Cassette Dancers. This is the kind of choreography I love to watch: it’s complex, fun and immensely satisfying.
Katy’s remixed sound track for The Cassettes dance-theatre performance includes Hound Dog, You’re the One That I Want, Summer Lovin and the film’s song-title, Frankie Valli’s Grease. Enjoy!
Tickets for the Grease film event at 7pm on Sat June 24, can be purchased at the Brunswick Picture House.