Grease is a title that still lights up the eyes of so many people today; it is a classic of the musical genre, with a cast headed by two standouts like John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John. In short, an important legacy. And from that comes the series Grease: rise of the Pink Ladies, available on Paramount+ starting today with the first two episodes, with subsequent episodes available for streaming every Friday.
The series stars Marisa Davila as Jane, Cheyenne Isabel Wells as Olivia, Ari Notartomaso as Cynthia, Tricia Fukuhara as Nancy, Shanel Bailey as Hazel, Madison Thompson as Susan, Johnathan Nieves as Richie, Jason Schmidt as Buddy, Maxwell Whittington-Cooper as Wally and Jackie Hoffman as Asst. Principal McGee.
The narrative takes place exactly four years earlier than the story we all knew in Grease, that is, in 1954, before rock ‘n’ roll ruled and before the T-Birds were the coolest kids in school. The narrative changes, adapting to our times, trying to portray the issues of the social media world in the 1950s, that is, including those minorities who would not have had a voice in the original context. And with that it hits the mark, as well as with the musical part, a key element when you think about how iconic certain songs from the original soundtrack still are today. Everything here is overwrought and engaging, even the re-release of “Grease is the word.” Another winning track is definitely “New Cool,” the original premiere of the series, which features the character of Cynthia, played by Ari Notartomaso and the T-Birds. “New Cool” is one of 30 original songs featured in the first season, thanks to the work of executive music producer and Grammy Award-nominated songwriter Justin Tranter at the helm.
Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies is written and executive produced by Annabel Oakes (“Atypical,” “Minx”), who also serves as showrunner and directed a follow-up episode. Alethea Jones (“Made for Love,” “Dollface,” “Evil”) directed the pilot and two other episodes and is executive producer. Marty Bowen and Wyck Godfrey executive produce for Temple Hill, while Adam Fishbach is also executive producer. Produced by Grace Gilroy and executive produced by Erik Feig and Samie Kim Falvey through PICTURESTART. Choreography is by Jamal Sims, who also directed, and music by Grammy Award nominee and executive music producer Justin Tranter.
