In ‘Grease’ Finale, Alumni Cast Decides Not to Clean Up Its Act

They put the dirt back in “Grease.”

Alumni of John Burroughs High School in Burbank, who had been ordered by school district officials to eliminate suggestive dancing and pelvic thrusts during their two-weekend engagement of the popular musical, gave their final show Saturday night.

Guess what happened. Lots of pelvic thrusts and suggestive dancing, as well as the touching of certain body parts in a fashion that might have made even Michael Jackson blush.

“We did it like we wanted to do it,” said Darla Dargenzio, who played the virginal Sandy.

Not that the adult cast turned “Grease” into “Oh! Calcutta!” or “Last Tango in Burbank.” In fact, much of the language that the cast had been told to leave out was left out.

However, during the course of the two-hour show, male cast members found occasion to good-naturedly scratch or grab or thrust their lower torsos. At one point, Dana Anderson, who played Danny Zuko, the lead tough, reached into his gym shorts, rummaged around and pulled out . . . a cigarette.

Led Protest

Anderson, who had led the protest against the cuts by district administrators, admitted that the suggestive dancing was a little more intensive in this show than in others. “But we’ve been doing a lot of it throughout the engagement, and no one has complained,” he said.

The 200-member audience, including several children and young people, whooped it up and cheered during the entire show and awarded the performers with a standing ovation at the conclusion.

No school administrators or Burbank school board members were in the audience.

The spirit of the last show was doubly nostalgic for the performers, most of whom had performed “Grease” when they were students at the high school in 1981.

Administrators raised the same objections to material and dances in the play back then, and they told the students to clean up the play. The cast and crew made the changes--until the last show, that is. Then they did it their way.

Broadway Hit

“Grease,” a parody of 1950s teen-agers, opened in New York in 1972 and was one of the longest-running shows in Broadway history. The play was made into a hit PG-rated movie.

James Perino, deputy superintendent of instruction, had said before the show opened that if the cuts were not made, the show would not go on. He said he wanted the adult cast to perform the same toned-down show as present-day Burroughs students, who performed the play earlier this month.

He said several elements of the play, including lyrics and a scene where a girl lies on top of a boy in a park, were inappropriate for general audiences.

The alumni initially threatened not to go on in protest of the cuts, but they reluctantly agreed to obey the district’s wishes.

When the park scene was performed Saturday, the boy and girl were sitting next to each other, kissing.

“I’m glad we finally did it our way, but I’m really glad this whole controversy is over,” Dargenzio said.