Plot:Sandra Dee moves to the US and encounters the boy with which she had a summer fling with. However, Danny strangely begins to act entirely differently than he did before, leaving Sandy to wonder what on earth changed.
Set:
The set was an all-immersive indoor and outdoor space. There was a 1959-style fairground at the heart of the venue, with working attractions and food stands, as well as an arena filled with diners, drive-in cars and high-school bleachers, of which all the performers utilised.
Review:
This production is advertised as an ‘immersive movie musical’ which I would say hits the nail on the head. It is not fleshed out enough to be a full musical but it has a lot more grandeur than your average cinema experience. I have seen and experienced immersive theatre before but nothing to this scale. I was completely blown away by the level of detail the company has gone into to ensure viewers feel fully encapsulated in 1959 America.
The entire venue felt extremely reminiscent of Disneyworld with the amount of care that has gone into decorating every aspect. This production is very laid back, so I would therefore highly recommend to those with trouble sitting still or being quiet for long periods of time as that is not a requirement whatsoever. Audience members have a very large venue to mosey about however they wish to and can be involved in the show to whatever capacity they feel comfortable: from sitting in a completely different location to all the action or being on the stage itself interacting with the actors and aiding with props.

The prime reason that Grease at Battersea Park is advertised as a movie musical is because it is essentially 50/50. There are multiple large projectors screening the movie at all times, and at key moments (usually songs) the performers make their appearance and re-enact what is happening on the screens. While I appreciate the blend, I do feel the performers could have been utilised a lot more. As well as this, there were times the actors appeared to be lip-syncing to the speech or songs, and even when they weren’t, it was very hard to hear them over the crowd. I do not think there were nearly enough performers to cater to the scale of the venue, most of the time during ensemble numbers it still felt rather sparse.

Of course, being an immersive experience, the actors would interact with audience members; doing things like inviting them onstage, teaching them dance moves, or even just talking to them in character, and this was greatly appreciated. The actors did a wonderful job at keeping in character the entire time, and since they got to have so much audience interaction you could tell the performers enjoyed fleshing out their characters far more than would be required in a regular show.
It should be noted that this is far more of an experience than a production. There is plenty to do and plenty to see and I would say that the show itself is just a part of it. To truly get the full splendour of it all I recommend getting there early, on an empty stomach, ready to try out some fairground rides, and dressed up in your 1950’s finery. This experience is a particular dream for those die-hard Grease fans, as you are quite literally immersed in the world of Rydell Academy from the music to the food to the performances.

The calibre of the performers was, of course, outstanding. As said before, I do wish their mics were on a higher volume, but other than that they were excellent. The choreography was entrancing, and the fact that performers would not just perform onstage but on bleachers and even fairground rides truly showcases their versatility. The thing that stuck out to me most about the performers is how much you could tell they were enjoying themselves- and as they should!
My main complaint is that nothing felt like the main event. There was a lot going on at once, and viewers could choose where to spend their time and what to focus on, but especially since there were such long breaks between performer appearances, things could feel a tad boring at times. This experience is completely what you make of it. The more you put in, the more you will get. I would recommend it regardless of anything else purely because the general splendour is just too good to miss, but the production itself (accompanied by everything else) made it a truly immersive evening.