I am old enough to have seen Grease in the cinema when it was first released in 1978 and have ever since been a fan of the high school love story. The idea of Grease the film being mixed with Greek mythology to make a new parody sounded too good to miss.
The three “fates” lead the evening’s entertainment. Grace Kelly Miller plays Atropus alongside Lara Beth Sas as Clotho and Christopher Patten-Walker as Lachesis. They think they are going to decide who will be matched with who as the pupils return to Olympus Academy and the book of Fates is being written.
Sandy and Danny are replaced by Zeus (Peter Camilleri) and Hera (Philippa Leadbetter), who both attend Olympus Academy. Although they don’t realise this after their brief summer holiday fling.
A special mention has to go to Christopher Patten-Walker, Ollie Thomas Smith, and Safia Bartley. Each of them play completely different characters throughout the performance and are incredibly fast at switching between them. The backstage must be chaos!
It has comedy moments, plenty of music that almost matches the original Grease soundtrack, and my heart sank at times when the lyrics were different (expected though due to copyrights) and the characters names are firmly placed in Ancient Greece mythology. Ancient Grease is written by Lady Aria Grey and directed by Dan Wye.
The Vaults is the ideal venue to stage a production like this. The runway staging allows everyone in the auditorium to see the whole space and not miss any of the action. Although there is some minor audience participation, avoid the front row if that’s not your “thing.”
A special mention goes to Caitlin Mawhinney, Costume Designer, for an excellent range of costumes bringing out each characters’ persona.
The entire cast is excellent, and the energy levels never falter throughout the two hours and forty minutes. Although that’s a longer running time than the original film of one hour and fifty minutes and would definitely benefit from being edited as it felt like it dragged towards the end.
For more information about Ancient Grease and future productions at The Vaults Waterloo, please use the link below.
Three Stars.
Photo credit Flavia Fraser-Cannon
Cast and creatives.
Christopher Patten-Walker – Ares
Grace Kelly Miller – Atropos
Lara Sas – Clotho
Lucy Penrose – Aphrodite
Ollie Thomas Smith – Hephestus/Dance Captain
Peter Camilleri – Zeus
Philippa Leadbetter – Hera
Safia Bartley – Athena
Lady Aria Grey – Writer
Dan Wye – Director and Comedy Consultant
Corin Buckeridge – Musical Supervisor
Lucinda Lawrence – Choreographer
Gabriel Swarbrick – Sound Designer and Company Stage Manager
Clancy Flynn – Lighting Designer
Isabella Van Braeckel – Set Designer
Caitlin Mawhinney – Costume Designer
ANCIENT GREASE
The Vaults
4 March to 31 May 2026
Theatre, Art and Film Reviews 
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