Grease: The Immersive Movie Musical at Battersea Park Review
Stephanie Costi (Sandy) and Georgios Michalidis (Danny). Photo: Matt Crockett
In the summer of 1958, Danny Zuko and Sandy Olsen fall in love during a romantic holiday by the beach. Believing their summer romance will end when the holidays do, they part ways, only for Sandy to unexpectedly enroll at Danny's Rydell High School when term begins. Eager to preserve his reputation as the school's effortlessly cool greaser, Danny distances himself from Sandy in front of his friends, creating tension between them. Through misunderstandings, personal growth and mutual change, the two eventually find their way back to one another.
The story of Grease has become one of the most familiar in American popular culture. Following its successful 2025 run, Secret Cinema's Grease: The Immersive Movie Musical, built around the beloved 1978 film, has returned to Evolution London in Battersea Park, inviting audiences once again into a nostalgic recreation of Rydell High.
Even before entering the performance space, visitors are greeted by Rydell High's iconic red banners. Beyond them lies a lively 1950s fairground complete with brightly coloured bars, food stalls, carnival games, swing rides and funhouse attractions, immediately establishing the production's celebratory atmosphere. The reveal of the school's Main Hall is particularly striking (Tom Rogers). Near the entrance of the vast venue stands the National Bandstand, where musicians are already performing as audiences arrive. The two VIP viewing areas are equally imaginative: one recreates the look of a drive-in cinema using the bonnets of vintage cars, while the other faithfully evokes Frosty's Palace. A school cafeteria table, a few shops and the main gym are scattered throughout the space, encouraging audiences to explore. Around ten large screens continuously project the 1978 film, occasionally intercut with live camera feeds of the performers, allowing the stage action and the original movie to coexist. Throughout the evening, audiences are free to move around the venue and experience the performances from different perspectives.
Considerable thought has clearly gone into making audiences feel like members of the Rydell High community. Throughout the evening, spectators are invited to sing the school song alongside the cast, dance with the performers, join the cheerleaders or even take part in the Pink Ladies' pyjama party. As the dance sequences end and confetti rains down from above, the venue fills with an infectious sense of celebration.
Yet the production stops short of achieving complete immersion, largely because of the aspect it chooses to prioritise. Apart from a handful of key dialogue scenes performed live, most of the spoken text remains confined to the film, while the cast primarily deliver the musical numbers. In many cases, even the dialogue immediately preceding each song is taken directly from the film's soundtrack, with performers lip-syncing rather than speaking live. The result is an occasional sense of disconnection. Because the screens often continue showing the film instead of live footage, the contrast between the cinematic and theatrical elements can become even more apparent.
Once a musical number concludes and the performers leave the playing space, audiences are briefly left unsure where to direct their attention. For a moment, there appears to be little happening live, encouraging spectators to wander the venue whilst returning their focus to the film until the cast reappear. Since each performer is only present for relatively short periods, characters who are already lightly drawn in the source material risk feeling even more symbolic than fully realised. Strengthening the audience's identity as students within Rydell High and giving greater dramatic justification for their presence in the world of the production could further enhance its immersive quality.
That said, the performances themselves are full of energy and immediately capture the iconic personalities that define Grease. Stephanie Costi's Sandy is innocent, slightly shy and irresistibly sweet. Lucy Penrose brings intelligence and emotional depth to Rizzo, balancing her tough exterior with moments of vulnerability; her rendition of There Are Worse Things I Could Do is particularly memorable. Georgios Michalidis presents Danny as effortlessly cool and occasionally macho, yet still with warmth. Whether it is Sandy and Danny reminiscing during Summer Nights from opposite sides of the venue, Rizzo perched atop a towering four-poster bed singing Look At Me, I'm Sandra Dee, or the T-Birds bursting into Greased Lightnin', each sequence effortlessly drew my attention back to the first time I watched the film. Seeing these familiar moments brought vividly to life, I found myself joining my friends and the surrounding audience in singing, "Shoo bop bop, shoo bop bop."
Grease has always been a work whose cultural influence far outweighs the complexity of its plot. For contemporary audiences, its strongest appeal arguably lies in its nostalgia, and immersive theatre provides an ideal medium through which to amplify that sentiment. The foundations of an immersive musical are already firmly in place here, which makes the continued emphasis on the film feel like something of a missed opportunity. If the live storytelling were allowed to take greater precedence and the sense of immersion strengthened further, an evening spent at Rydell High in Battersea Park could become an even more joyful and unforgettable experience.
Grease The Immersive Movie Musical plays at Evolution London, Battersea Park until 13th September 2026.
★★★★
Reviewed by Ziwen, July 2026. Disclaimer: Tickets were gifted in return for a review. All opinions are our own.