When the Triple Threat Performers take the stage at the end of April, they’ll be telling a story that has become synonymous with young love, teenage angst and the rock and roll that formed the soundtrack for people of a certain age. That music, however, is as timeless as the teenage themes and is certain to capture the hearts of the audience, regardless of age.

Grease the Musical is a romantic comedy set in a high school of the 1950s, but the themes of teen sexuality, peer pressure, gang violence, rebellion, values and love are timeless.

In truth, the 1971 musical is a perfect vehicle to showcase the talents of the Triple Threat Performers.

The group, founded in 2019 by Victoria Callin, operates out of the Prospect Lake Community Hall in Saanich and has always aimed at creating a welcoming and supportive environment for young theatre lovers. Not unlike the young people in the musical, the group gives the young people in the gang a chance to explore their passions. (OK, Triple Threat isn’t really a gang, but give them some matching jackets and…who knows)

Each year, Triple Threat Performers produces two fully staged musicals and provides the young participants with hands-on experience in the performing arts. In years past, they’ve sung, danced and acted their way through Les Misérables, Finding Nemo, Footloose, Matilda the Musical, Annie, High School Musical, and Into the Woods.

Grease centers on Danny Zuko, the charismatic leader of the T-Birds (a real greaser gang), and Sandy Dumbrowski, the sweet, innocent new girl at Rydell High who has a summer relationship with Danny. When they meet again in high school, the relationship is far from an easy one. They have to navigate the challenges of social pressures, cliques, and Danny’s tough guy image.

Sandy’s answer to the challenges lies in her attempt to fit into the female counterpart to Danny’s gang, the Pink Ladies.

The show has all the elements of high school life, including pep rallies, drive-in movie outings, car races and romantic roadblocks.

OK, it’s not Hamlet, but the story is entertaining and a perfect vehicle for the young talent in the Triple Threat Performers. The performances are convincing and the singing and dancing easily carry the story to its happy conclusion.

Grease will take the stage at the Dave Dunnet Community Theatre in Oak Bay beginning April 23 and running to April 26, with two performances on the 25th and 26th.

Tickets and more information can be found at www.triplethreatperformers.ca.