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When 'Grease' Was The Word
Episode 860

When 'Grease' Was The Word

<p>Rerun: Edgy, gritty and sexy, the Broadway production of ‘Grease’ opened at the Broadhurst Theatre on 7th June, 1972, beginning what would become a record-breaking eight-year run. </p><p>Despite NOT featuring some of the most well-known hits from the movie - including ‘Grease Is The Word’, ‘You’re The One That I Want’ and ‘Hopelessly Devoted To You’ - the production attracted an unusually high proportion of blue-collar audiences, keen to see working-class and ethnic immigrant subculture portrayed in a musical.</p><p>In this episode, Olly, Arion and Rebecca reveal the origin of the word ‘greasers’, explain why ‘50s nostalgia played little part in the original success of the show, and consider whether the Grease Megamix is an appropriate choice for 10 year olds to sing at a Summer Ball…</p><p>Further Reading:</p><p>• The Playbill from the original production:</p><p>https://www.playbill.com/article/playbill-archives-grease-1972-com-143094</p><p>• ‘It’s The Longest-Running Show on Broadway’ - a 1970s TV commercial for the show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Phxb5K7jUUw</p><p>• The original dialogue from ‘Grease’ c/o New Line Theatre:</p><p>http://www.newlinetheatre.com/grease-dialogue.html</p><br><p><em>‘Why am I hearing a rerun?’</em></p><p>Each Thursday and Friday we repeat stories from our archive of 800+ episodes, so we can maintain the quality of our independent podcast and bring you fresh, free content every Monday-Wednesday… </p><br><p>… But 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴members get an additional full-length episode each Sunday! Join now with a free trial on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/today-in-history-with-the-retrospectors/id1564093130" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://patreon.com/retrospectors" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Patreon</a> and support our show ❤️</p><br /><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

Today In History with The Retrospectors

June 7, 202411m 30s

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Show Notes

Rerun: Edgy, gritty and sexy, the Broadway production of ‘Grease’ opened at the Broadhurst Theatre on 7th June, 1972, beginning what would become a record-breaking eight-year run. 

Despite NOT featuring some of the most well-known hits from the movie - including ‘Grease Is The Word’, ‘You’re The One That I Want’ and ‘Hopelessly Devoted To You’ - the production attracted an unusually high proportion of blue-collar audiences, keen to see working-class and ethnic immigrant subculture portrayed in a musical.

In this episode, Olly, Arion and Rebecca reveal the origin of the word ‘greasers’, explain why ‘50s nostalgia played little part in the original success of the show, and consider whether the Grease Megamix is an appropriate choice for 10 year olds to sing at a Summer Ball…

Further Reading:

• The Playbill from the original production:

https://www.playbill.com/article/playbill-archives-grease-1972-com-143094

• ‘It’s The Longest-Running Show on Broadway’ - a 1970s TV commercial for the show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Phxb5K7jUUw

• The original dialogue from ‘Grease’ c/o New Line Theatre:

http://www.newlinetheatre.com/grease-dialogue.html


‘Why am I hearing a rerun?’

Each Thursday and Friday we repeat stories from our archive of 800+ episodes, so we can maintain the quality of our independent podcast and bring you fresh, free content every Monday-Wednesday… 


… But 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴members get an additional full-length episode each Sunday! Join now with a free trial on Apple Podcasts or Patreon and support our show ❤️


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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