www.forbes.com: When I first saw Grease on the big screen decades ago, little did I know that I would one day be watching an off-Broadway parody with vaping as the backdrop. Even less expected—that I would find key medical lessons throughout the musical, particularly involving the use of e-cigarettes or vaping, which is a growing public health concern.
4 comments:
I think that this is such a funny concept and idea, and a fun and educational warning on vaping and e-cigarettes! The mentions of modern technology within this iconic oldies classic make me extremely curious to see how the modern take was read on stage. Sometimes, when attempting to create a modern version of an old classic, it can turn out to be flat and just not read as well on stage as on paper or as an idea. I am very curious to see how far they changed the main plot point. Is the story the same, and just a modern take on the story, or is it something where the story is different, and it just has the vibe and elements of the show Grease? After reading this article, I am going to try and find more information about this show and see if I can find some promo videos or some recordings of the music, cause I would love to see how they changed the lyrics.
I hope that this musical is successful at reaching its intended audience. However, I do find the choice to make this a Grease parody an unusual one to make if you hope to use it to spread a message outside of areas who are already familiar with the source material. Furthermore, how does one acquire the rights to do something like this? Grease is not in the public domain- does this fall enough under the fair use terms that the creators are confident that they will not face any sort of legal blowback from the large corporations, that it appears, own almost all of the productions that anyone produces, ever. I do think that the purpose of this piece is a noble one. It shocks me how widespread smoking is at this school sometimes, but it is also interesting the amount of people who vape, who aren’t using vaping to quit smoking.
I think this just seems outrageously corny and kind of dumb.. But so is grease I suppose. I just personally don't like “fresh modern takes” on old movies, musicals, or plays because as I've already said they are not just corny but also extremely overdone and overhyped. I just personally cringe whenever I hear or see a “fresh take on an old classic” that's supposed to appeal to younger generations when it's clearly and obviously written by someone old. And vape the musical seems to be an example of this exact case. This article doesn't really describe how this musical communicates the dangers of vaping either.. Personally I think we should bring back scary and terrifying anti substance commercials because they are the most impactful. A fun cute little musical telling you not to vape is just gonna make someone want to vape more.. The best anti substance messages have to be eerie, creepy, and unsettling so they stick with you.
I couldn’t help but draw parallels between this production and the musical “Refer Madness”. While “Vape! The Grease Parody” depicts the very real negative effects of the rise in e-cigarettes, “Refer Madness” satirizes the outlandish propaganda against marijuana in the 1970’s War on Drugs. They’re both comedies and satirize teenage drug use, but “Vape! The Grease Parody” differs in having a powerful and informative message against vaping. From the description itself, the play is very in-tune with Gen-Z culture, containing elements such as “TikTok University” and phrases such as “We’re all on our cell phones” and “We all have ADHD!”. However, despite the absurdity, the play seems to be surprisingly informative in its message against vaping, using medical facts and research to back up its claims. I love the idea of this musical, combining comedy with sincerity, and revitalizing Grease with pop-culture. That being said, the title alone may steer away the audience they really want to address, and though the message holds solid, to use Grease as a reference for this musical is sad to see for the iconic property it is. I think this idea has an abundance of potential, but would've worked a lot better as an original property unattached from Grease.
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