Grease at the Bournemouth Pavilion Review
Grease
Bournemouth Pavilion
21-25 July 2015
Reviewed by Vicky Webber
Yesterday I visited the Bournemouth Pavilion to see a performance of Grease. The venue is in the centre of town so parking is very easy, with onsite parking, street parking across the road and three public car parks next to it. To cover the fact we were early and the time of the show we paid for four hours which was nearly £5 but can be paid in change of via a phone app which was very convenient.
The Pavilion is a very old venue, but the appearance has been well kept and clean, although still dated. The seats are very close together and it was very hot inside because of this. During the interval we grabbed soft drinks which were really reasonably priced, and stepped outside to the beautiful view of Bournemouth gardens, beach and sea.
As we arrived to the venue we were greeted by the atmosphere of the show before you have even entered the building with the classic Pink Lady style car outside, which provided some fun pictures. Once inside there was a photo booth with retro style props, which many people had dressed up Pink Lady or T-Bird style and the use of the photo booth was a fun way to help them capture the effort in their costumes. I had only needed to speak to one member of staff to hand over my ticket but he was very friendly, and helpful suggesting the best way to get to our seats. I did however see two members of staff help a wheelchair user to and in to her seat and then tuck the wheelchair out of the way.
Of course it is a well-known storyline, but Grease is a romantic comedy set in the 1950’s and is the story of Danny and Sandy. Two teens who meet and fall in love throughout the holidays on the beach. The new semester starts and to their surprise they are at the same school. The story develops and Danny needs to keep his popular tough guy attitude, where Sandy the new girl is desperately trying to fit in with the help of the pink ladies. The story touches on subjects that are still relevant to teens today, such as teen pregnancy, alcohol, peer pressure and life choices past high school which is why I feel it is so popular so many years on.
I really enjoyed the enthusiasm of all the cast, I could notice even some that did not have ‘main’ characters to play really gave each song, dance, move their all and really enjoyed the show. The characters were very clear who is who, and the casting was selected well. The costumes were authentic and classic of the time. You really knew who someone was before they were introduced. My favourite character of the night was Rizzo. The actress really played her part as you would expect Rizzo to be with the attitude and characteristics. Her song ‘There I worse things I could do’ was very well performed and my favourite of the evening. I thought the staging was very good and a great use of space, set changings were done quickly between scenes and the use of all the set and the way it transformed was creative.
There were a few regular problems with the speakers and microphones. More in the first act so hopefully it is something that was picked up and fixed during the interval. The speakers were cracking and the microphones kept switching off, because of this at times you couldn’t hear what was being said.
Overall I thought the show was good, although you could tell it was performed by an amateur group. It was an enjoyable evening, and I would recommend this show but I would not see it again.
Rating: 3.5/5
Tickets cost from £17.20 to £20.43
Grease is at the Bournemouth Pavilion Theatre until 25 July 2015. For more information or to book tickets click here or call the box office on 0844 576 3000.
Bournemouth Pavilion Theatre, Westover Road, Bournemouth, BH1 2BU | 0844 576 3000
