Some things are so good you need to see them twice, and that will certainly be the case for me when I head to I Am Grease Grillson on 29 January. Originating from The Blue Room Theatre’s 600 Seconds program in 2025, I was there to witness the show’s very first iteration. What followed, for myself and many other audience members, was ten minutes of uninterrupted laughter thanks to Elise Wilson’s creation, Grease, a “moustache-loving, muscle-bulging weightlifter.”
Blending physical comedy, clowning and mime, Elise is now gearing up to bring Grease back to the stage, this time as a full-length work. No doubt, I will once again be enamoured by his muscles and charisma. I spoke with Elise to gain insight into the evolution of this now-iconic character.
Hey Grease/Elise, thanks for chatting to Magazine 6000! I’ve had the privilege of meeting Grease Grillson in the Blue Room’s 600 Seconds program- wow what a strong guy! Tell us a bit about him and how he came to fruition?
In the baby stages of making the show, it was going to be Elise Wilson vs The Audience, where I’d compete with the audience in a series of challenges. But after trying to squish too much into 600 Seconds (that’s 10 minutes – yes I’m a math whiz too), we realised it was best to stick to one task: lifting a weight. So, Grease Grillson, “the world’s strongest man” (but not really) was born (metaphorically).
I Am Grease Grillson is an extension on your initial 600 seconds work, how has the show evolved?
This full length show is an entirely new plot. Although perhaps “plot” is too strong of a word. We’ve kept a couple of the 600 Seconds bits, but the majority of the show is totally fresh. We do some flashbacks, and I even play other characters including a mean baby orphanage owner.
You mix physical comedy, clowning, mime and (gentle) audience interaction in this work. Where do you start with creating and developing a show combining these elements?
While Duncan and I visited Michigan recently, we booked a work in progress show for I Am Grease Grillson. After scrapping all our ideas multiple times (classic creative process), our successful process was when he suggested writing down all our imagined bits (games, funny moments, silly mimes etc) on post-it notes, then ordering them from what I’m most inspired by through to what gives me the least joy. Then I created a plot – arc – and matched the story beats with the bits I find the most joy in. Then with just the outline in my head, I waltzed onstage and basically improvised the whole show, and luckily it wasn’t a trash fire but we actually found some fun stuff to build on.
I Am Grease Grillson in The Blue Room Theatre’s 600 Second Program.
This show is “tailored for fellow goofballs and anyone who needs a laugh”. Do you have a secret sauce for making audiences laugh?
I wish I had a secret sauce. Something I love about clowning is when I make an offer (by which I mean do something onstage), it’s a win-win whether it lands or not. If the audience laughs, I know they like it, so I do more. If they don’t laugh, I can acknowledge it, and by being honest about the flop, the audience remains onside, and I have information about what they don’t like, so I can steer away from it. To give more context, the ratio of this show is 50% planned and 50% improvised based on how the audience responds, so it’s a bit different every time.
You’ve collaborated with Duncan Young on this work and you’ve even been trialing bits of the show with audiences in his home state of Michigan- what’s it like testing and trialing things in front of international audiences versus us in Perth.
Yes, Grease Grillson will now be taking the title of Mr Worldwide. But yeah travelling with Duncan and trialling the show has been heaps of fun. In the work in progress show, I played with an an American accent for Grease, and had a few people laugh with me about it afterwards. Plus, the city Grand Rapids has a thriving improv scene, but not much clown, so to our surprise we sold out the super late 10:30pm slot as it turned out audiences were very curious to see what all the fuss is about.
How do you describe I Am Grease Grillson in 5 words?
Goofy, playful, audience-interactive (is that one word or two words? Now I’m definitely over the limit but I’m continuing anyway), and muscular.
I Am Grease Grillson is on at The Jonesway Theatre Thu Jan 29, Fri Jan 30, Sat Jan 31, 7pm.