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Vape! The Grease Parody, a new musical by Catie Hogan & Sketchworks Comedy, with lyrics and additional material by Billy Recce (A Musical About Star Wars; FIVE: The Musical Parody; Fowl Play) and Danny Salles (TV’s “Joan and Melissa”; K”athy Griffin: My Life on the D List”), will be performed at industry-only readings on Friday, November 22 at Theater 555. Vape! is directed by Jack Plotnick (Disaster!; Space Station 76) and produced by Sketchworks Comedy, with Seth Rudetsky (Disaster!; The Ritz; Grease) serving as a creative consultant.
Vape! is a hilarious send-up of the iconic musical Grease. The show pokes loving fun at all of the wonderful moments, characters, and plot-holes from the original while taking a satirical look at the state of youth culture today – which may have evolved, but never really changes.
Vape! was legally declared a parody by the Southern District of New York in 2022. After originally premiering in Atlanta in 2018, Vape! was scheduled to premiere in NYC in August 2019 at Improv Asylum. Ten days before the first performance, the rightsholders of Grease served Sketchworks Comedy a cease-and-desist letter, claiming Vape! violated their . 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 ruled that Vape! is, indeed, a parody.
Vape! readings will feature a star-studded cast of Broadway favorites: Tony Award nominee Kerry Butler (Xanadu; Hairspray) as Sandy, James Carpinello (Little Shop of Horrors; Saturday Night Fever) as Danny, Tony Award nominee Leslie Rodriguez Kritzer (Spamalot; Beetlejuice) as Marty, Tamika Lawrence (The Heart of Rock and Roll; Caroline or Change) as Frenchie, Tony Award winner Beth Leavel (The Drowsy Chaperone, The Prom) as Rizzo, Tony Award winner Bonnie Milligan (Kimberly Akimbo; Head Over Heels) as Jan/Putzie, Joel Perez (Fun Home, Hazbin Hotel) as Kenickie, and Jelani Remy (Back to the Future, Ain’t Too Proud) as Sonny/Cha Cha/Tom.
“We are beyond thrilled to present Vape! to the theatrical industry with such an amazing company of actors,” said Sketchworks Comedy owner Brian Troxell. “This is such an incredible group.” Catie Hogan, who wrote the original version of Vape! in 2018, marvels at the show’s evolution, “Vape! began with a performance at a black box in Atlanta, and it is now being presented in New York City by top Broadway professionals. I could have never envisioned such a journey for our legally declared parody!”
Vape! features musical direction & arrangements by Lena Gabrielle (SIX, Emojiland, FIVE: The Parody Musical). Brent Michael Jones (Perfect Crime) is the Stage Manager and Mark Osgood is the assistant stage manager. Vape! is general managed by Visceral Entertainment.
