Is anyone familiar with "Grease, School Edition"?

[jmowreader]

One of the local high schools is doing a production of "Grease, School Edition." I looked it up online, and it claims to be a version of the fan favorite 1970s movie/stage play "Grease" that's suitable for teens to perform.

Uhh...what do they do, come on stage and sing "Grease Is The Word," "Greased Lightnin'" and "Hopelessly Devoted To You" and go home? Making an edition of Grease without the sex, drinking and smoking is like making an edition of "Behind the Green Door" with no sex in it - the raunchy stuff is kinda integral to the storyline.

[SeattleVet]

1. They changed a lot of the lines from the songs...

and changed dialog and scenes to eliminate what they felt was not suitable to perform in front of the kids that are already smoking, drinking, and fucking.

The don't even sing the correct lyrics for 'Greased Lightning'. Can't have them exposed to a line like 'The chicks will cream' (changed to 'will scream'), now, can we?

In other words, the people that used to be a part of the old PMRC (remember them?) got the thing bowdlerized into an unrecognizable mess that only somewhat resembles the magnificent original.

<barf>

[Raine1967]

2. They did the same thing to *into the woods* the Sondheim version as opposed

to the movie version coming out. This version is sanitized /censored for High School productions.

Junior version
The musical has been adapted into a child-friendly version for use by schools, with the second act completely removed, as well as certain elements from the first. The show is shortened from the original 3-plus hours to fit in a 60 to 80 minute range, and the music transposed into keys that more easily fit young voices.

We have a copy of the original PBS broadcast with Bernadette Peters and the *Wolf*

(*Also Known as certain elements from the first act)

As to your post.: (sorry for the digression) What the hell would they do with *Look at me, I'm Sandra Dee, lousy with virginity* ?

[jmowreader]

3. That's what I'm saying: what the hell WOULD they do with it?

And it isn't like the American musical canon isn't packed with shows that aren't going to warp the fragile little minds of Today's Impressionable Youth.

[SeattleVet]

5. School version: 'Look at me I'm Sandra Dee. Godess full of purity;

won't lose my head; trust my heart, use my head'...and it digresses from there.

Depending on the production, either completely drop the 'Doris Day' lyrics, or change the words to something else.

Replace 'Elvis, Elvis keep your pelvis far from me" with 'No, no, no, Sal Mineo, I could never stoop so low'.

'Fongool; becomes 'You fool'.

Here's a sample:

And the full lyrics, from a Google Doc of a school presentation:

Sandra Dee
Look at me, I’m Sandra Dee
Goddess of all purity
Won’t be misled, trust my heart, use my head
I must, I’m Sandra Dee

I don’t lie or swear, I don’t rat my hair
I get ill at the sight of blood
Well I don’t care, if you think I’m square
Fail in school, My name would be mud

Oh, no, no Sal Mineo
I would never stoop so low
Please keep your cool now your starting to drool
You Fool! I’m Sandra Dee!

[jmowreader]

6. The kids in the back are like, "what the fuck is this shit?"

At some point ya really have to ask yourself, "if we need to bowdlerize a show this badly to keep the parents from putting their kids into private school over it, wouldn't we be better off doing H.M.S. Pinafore?"

[Sweet Freedom]

4. Many musicals

have school versions (Rent, Les Mis, Chicago, Legally Blond, Wicked, etc.) They are PG and are often much shorter than the originals.