Although it was all big smiles and bright lights on NBC’s Grease Live for Vanessa Hudgens, the star struggled to keep it together backstage after the show wrapped as she mourned the death of her father. “Thank you to everyone who watched and supported me last night”, she wrote. While the movie version had an animated sequence, “Grease: Live” opted to show the audience the obstacle course of sets that their cast would be running through. Making her efforts all the more impressive and moving was the fact that she was performing just one day after her father died of cancer.
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Los Angeles is known for its picture-perfect weather so when the rain and wind took over the city, the Grease Live producers knew that the show must go on… even though there are plenty of outdoor scenes. This locket/original Frenchy shirt you left in my room had me crying those happy tears. For someone to take such devastating news, yet still manage to come out and give such a sensational performances shows true class, maturity and talent, and Vanessa can be very proud of herself for that.
Now Hough got to step into Sandy’s poodle skirts, spandex trousers and highheeled slides and entertain millions in FOX’s star-filled live production, Grease: Live on January 31.
She landed the role of Rizzo in Fox’s live production of Grease, starring alongside Julianne Hough, Aaron Tveit, Carlos PenaVega, Carley Rae Jepsen, Keke Palmer, and Mario Lopez.
A dedication to her dad was also included in the show’s end credits.
She said after the show she dedicated the performance to him.
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After a courageous Grease: Live! performance, 27-year-old Vanessa Hudgens won hearts of fans all over the world. “So sorry for her loss & inspired that she will perform tonight’s @GoGrease in her fathers honor”, Kesse Tyler Ferguson added. You never know what to expect, especially for something brand new to FOX, but they did well, especially compared to NBC’s previous attempts.
