Performances begin on October 30.
VAPE IS THE WORD! …Vape! The Grease Parody, which launches a 10-week Off-Broadway engagement on October 30 at Theater 555 has revealed its cast. The ensemble will feature Ryan Avoux as Kenickie, Dante Brattelli as Sonny, Jen Clark as Jan, Meg Guiney as Marty, Scott Silagy as Danny, Slee as Rizzo, Kristen Amanda Smith as Frenchy and Lara Strong as Sandy. Vape! is a new musical by Catie Hogan & Sketchworks Comedy, with Lyrics & Additional Book by Billy Recce (A Musical About Star Wars; FIVE: The Musical Parody, Fowl Play) and Danny Salles (TV’s “The Middle,” “Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List”). Produced by Sketchworks Comedy, with Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley Jackson serving as creative consultants, the official opening night is Monday, November 3 at 7:30PM.
Vape! The Grease Parody is a hilariously unhinged spoof of the iconic and timeless musical Grease. The show pokes loving fun at all of the wonderful moments, sexual innuendos, outrageous characters, rivalries and secret romances from the original. The hair products may have changed, but the drama, the rivalries, and the thirst for hallway clout remain timeless. It's the musical you know and love... but dragged through a cloud of strawberry-scented vapor and a TikTok filter.. It's the show that you want (…Ooh! Ooh! Ooh, honey!)
Directed by Jack Plotnick (Disaster!, Space Station 76), Vape! features choreography by Ashley Marinelli (Stranger Sings! The Parody Musical, A Musical About Star Wars), and Music Supervision and Arrangements by Lena Gabrielle. The scenic design is by David Goldstein; costume design by Matthew Solomon, lighting design by Zach Pizza, sound design by Daniel Lundberg, and props design by Brendan McCann. Visceral Entertainment is the Executive Producer and General Manager. Alex Dash and Ian McQueen are the Stage Managers. Casting is by Cindi Rush.
After originally premiering in Atlanta in 2018, Vape! was scheduled to premiere in NYC in August 2019. Ten days before the first performance, the rightsholders of Grease served Sketchworks Comedy a cease-and-desist letter, claiming Vape! violated their copyright. As a result, Sketchworks Comedy filed a lawsuit against Grease, believing that they were protected under fair use law. After a two-and-a-half year legal battle, Chief Judge Laura Taylor Swain of the Southern District of New York ruled that Vape! is, indeed, a parody. After winning the lawsuit, Vape! made its triumphant return to NYC earlier this year in a star-studded one-night-only concert at Town Hall NYC.