GREASE! is based on scriptwriter Jim Jacobs’ schoolboy experiences of teenage rebellion and young romance in Chicago. This latest production from the award-winning Northavon Youth Theatre Company was performed under special licence to a full and appreciative house. The musical captured the feel of the 1950s rock’n’roll and drive-in-movies era with colourful, full-skirted polka-dot dresses, leather jackets and quiffed hairstyles. The imaginative sets included the Burger Palace, complete with Wurlitzer, and the all-important dream car which generated an electrifying ripple of excitement in the audience.

Director Lyn Bedford allowed the principals to develop their characters whilst playing to their strengths. Stephanie West’s transformation from the wholesome and demure Sandy to the super-confident and sassy Miss D, to win back the affections of Matthew Whittleton’s bad boy Danny Zuko, was a highlight. There were excellent performances from the Burger Palace Boys and bags of attitude from the Pink Ladies, plus a number of amusing and memorable individual cameos.

Musical direction from Arne Kovac produced a high standard of singing in solos, ensembles and the whole company, with a particularly heartfelt rendition of "There Are Worse Things I Could Do" by Joanna Williams. The energetic dance routines were precise, well-rehearsed and bursting with enthusiasm. A confident production from a talented cast that left you in no doubt that, amidst all the hard work, rehearsals must have been very good fun indeed.