“Critics, critics, let me be,” sings Rizzo in “Vape! The Grease Parody,” “this ain’t the Glass Menagerie.”
No free rides here, Pink Lady.
But, happily, “Vape!” is very funny. This show from New York has arrived in Chicago, ground zero for “Grease” and the town where the show’s creator, Jim Jacobs, once gave this agog critic a driving tour of the actual Northwest Side homes of Sandy and Danny. I actually thought there were more laughs in this tawdry parody than in “Titaníque,” and people are paying Broadway prices for all that entertaining Celine Dion nonsense.
Both shows make use of the parody defense, of course, that being the sly way for comedic artists to cash in on someone else’s intellectual property by insisting that their motives are honorably satirical. Those being parodied sometimes disagree and, indeed, “Vape!” had its day in court and won, a verdict duly celebrated in the show itself. (“As for you, Grease One and Two,” sings Rizzo, “I surely know you wanna sue.”)
Yup. They sure did. But they lost.
Produced at the Apollo Theater by Sketchworks Comedy with a mostly Chicago cast, “Vape!” has as many writers (eight) as cast members. But it looks like everyone got to include their best ideas. I was guffawing pretty much the entire time.
“Vape!” is really a parody of the “Grease” movie, a famously absurd hit where Danny and Sandy were transplanted from Chicago to Southern California, Olivia Newton-John made little attempt to disguise her native Australian accent and the teenagers were played by actors who would have looked long in the tooth in grad school.
Much fun is had with that here by the hilarious Suzanne Sole, the most mature Rizzo you ever did see. (“She’s not pregnant! It was just menopause!”).
More Top Picks Best Noise Canceling Headphones For Toddlers
Sandy (Jenna Smith, who can really sing the part) washes up like an Aussie mermaid on the California shore, a lengthy piece of business mostly there just so the show can have Danny say, “you’re so sandy,” which I thought was just inspired.
“There I was, walking on the beach,” recounts Will Leonard’s greaser Danny. “Pre-Dianetics.” (Get it?)
“I’m already a cliche!,” Sandy laments. “I’ve never been mellow. I’ve never even tried.”
Other creative amusements here include “Greased Lightnin'” rendered as a Prius (“Go, keep charging!”), and the lyrics to “Hopelessly Devoted to You” being changed to “I’m hopelessly gaslighted by you.” As for the treatment of “Born to Hand Jive,” well, family newspaper here, folks.
The Pink Ladies are all funny, too. “We’re rebels,” they say, “but for some reason we religiously attend all school functions.”
I have fond memories of the old Annoyance Theatre parodies with the likes of Susan Messing. The ensemble actress Sophia would be right at home in “Messing with a Friend.” I only wish “Vape! were staged in bit smaller a venue so all the gags about talented actors being stuck in a basement parody would better land, but the design from David Goldstein certainly makes the Apollo an immersive joint. Rydell High Cornball and all.
So, more power to “Vape!,” the kind of show that brings an Edinburgh Fringe Festival experience to Chicago without Chicago having the bother of flying to Scotland.
It’s directed by Jack Plotnick, who helmed “Disaster!” on Broadway, only to find himself involved in one. But “Vape!” very much has its feet on the ground.
Hometown title too! Did I mention Patty Simcox is played by a puppet and is a loyal member of Conspiracy Theorists of America?
Chris Jones is a Tribune critic
Review: “Vape! The Grease Parody” (3 stars)
More Top Picks Knife Sets
When: Through Jan. 3
Where: Apollo Theater Chicago, 2550 N. Lincoln Ave.
Running time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Tickets: $45-$65 at 773-935-6100 and vapethemusical.com