Jamie Lammers, Nederland. After the unfortunate cancellation of last year’s musical Urinetown due to the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, Nederland Middle Senior High School music and theater teacher Elizabeth Evans was thrilled to direct her version of the beloved musical Grease on the evenings of May 7, 8, and 9, 2021. The musical was also put together by assistant director and costume designer Susan Blurton, choreographer Ki Goodman, and technical director Mark Mabbett. Dan Wade served as the photographer for the show and Aimee Tomlinson designed the official poster and program. 

The musical opens with Danny (played by Ben Nichols in his debut role) reminiscing with his group of friends Kenickie (Noah Turner), Sonny (Kyler Rabourn in his debut), Roger (Townes Bakke), and Doody (Rowan Harper) about his incredible summer. He spent the summer with a beautiful girl named Sandy (Meagan Figgins), a girl that he believes he’ll never see again. However, his luck turns when Sandy happens to transfer to his high school, making friends with Rizzo (Alex Berumen-Gonzalez), Marty (Sydney Mayhew), Frenchy (Skylar Abookire), and Jan (Ande Hammers) and reminiscing about her experiences. The rest of the show follows Danny and Sandy as they struggle to break out of their high school personas and confess their love for each other in an environment full of peer pressure.

After the stressful year everyone has had quarantining, attending school at home, and having to forgo performances, NMSHS was ready to present a fun musical for the end of the school year. Unlike most musicals that have been performed by Nederland, where there are clear leads, supporting characters, and background personalities, every actor in this show gets their chance to shine as individuals. In every way, this is an ensemble musical. It was a total blast seeing everyone get their chance to show their singing, dancing, and acting talents. Also included in the cast are newcomers and previous stage crew Zach Weiner and Ely Nitsch as Eugene and Patty respectively. Playing multiple characters is the flamboyant Lucy Schalz as Patty’s friend and Cha-Cha, along with the charming Blue Garcia-Paine as Miss Lynch, the Teen Angel, and Joni Casino. Nederland graduate Hunter Mayhew even made a special cameo as the voiceover of radio announcer Vince Fontaine.

The sets were beautifully designed, with a makeshift Greased Lightning car highlighting that design. It’s clear that the various actors and techies that worked hard behind the scenes to build the sets (Ben Nichols, Lucas and Lucy Schalz, Meagan Figgins, Aric Olson, Natalie Taylor, Sydney Mayhew, Rowan Harper, and Townes Bakke) poured an incredible amount of work and passion into making the sets come to life. Lucy Schalz also served as the dance captain, and the choreography was an absolute blast to watch. Behind the scenes, Natalie Taylor served as the stage manager, Zach Weiner doubled as the lighting technician, Ely Nitsch and Violet Rainwater helped acquire the costumes, Glen Kress assisted in costume help, Mia Milwicz-Clanton served as the properties mistress, and Ivy Brundege served as the spotlight operator. The quick set and costume changes, the intricate scene changes, and the flow of the show as a whole were all satisfying to watch, and they’re all thanks to the dedication of the cast and crew of the show.

After everything that’s happened in the last year, everyone was thrilled to be a part of a musical that allowed them to simply have fun and let loose. Despite still needing to wear masks during the show and only being able to perform for one weekend for a limited audience, the students are absolutely excited that they were still able to participate as a part of the theater program they all adore. Evans and the assistant directors were also elated to be able to put on a show that allowed for the town of Nederland to kick back and relax during a very stressful time. It’s very likely that the talent of the theater program at NMSHS are all just as excited as the rest of the world is for their live theater program to return to normal again.

(Originally published in the May 20, 2021, edition of The Mountain-Ear. The print story has a lot more photos.)