![]() With Hough’s skills, that Sandy revelation could have been absolutely anything and instead it was, “Oh, they made her look just like Olivia Newton-John.” Under those circumstances, it would have been great if Kail and the choreographers had crafted something different and special for Bad Girl Sandy’s “You’re the One That I Want” coming out, but instead they stuck strictly to the movie version. When Sandy got moving, that’s where Hough’s star power came out and I think it’s fair to say that this is one of the best-danced Sandys ever. Hough’s acting was minimal and her singing was passable and since Sandy’s a bore under the best of circumstances, this never felt distracting. There were more than a few times, “Greased Lightnin” in particular, when Tveit was just trying to keep up with the ensemble and the camera’s desire to return to our lead was a drag. You could suspend disbelief because Tveit’s got great pipes and he’s a spirited dancer, but even as an affectation, Danny’s swagger never emerged. Tveit nailed the sweet Danny, but never made T-Bird Danny believable for a second. In order for Danny Zuko to work, you have to buy there’s a duality between Summer Danny, who wins Sandy’s heart at the beach, and T-Bird (or Burger Palace Boys) Danny. Kail had to be the star because his actual stars were, if I’m being candid, not terrific. NBC has made a winter tradition of live theater that, at its best, feels like it’s live theater, but Grease: Live showed if you have that desired vision, live television needn’t have any barriers. I’m thinking of the opening and closing numbers and their ability to take the show from stages into the outside world. I’m thinking of the immaculate stagecraft that allowed the Thunder Road car race to go from potentially cheesy into a wholly entertaining orchestration of lighting, smoke effects and camera moves. I’m thinking of the school dance numbers punctuated by cameras craning across the length of a basketball court and other cameras making their way unobtrusively through a maelstrom of writhing bodies. ![]() I’m thinking of the transition from Pink Lady sleepover to USO stage that turned “Freddy My Love” from a typical afterthought into a real showcase for Keke Palmer’s Marty. The little things that fell short of polished paled in comparison to the things that landed against all odds. ![]()
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