Directors announced for FOX’s “Grease: Live”

Tony Award-nominated director Thomas Kail (HamiltonIn the Heights) and veteran television director Alex Rudzinski (director of all 20 seasons of Dancing With the Stars, among many other broadcasts) will direct the live musical event Grease: Live that will air on FOX Jan. 31, 2016, at 7pm ET live/PT tape-delayed, it was announced today. Kail will oversee the stage direction, with Rudzinski serving as the live broadcast director.

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Taking the direction will be currently announced stars Julianne Hough as Sandy and Vanessa Hudgens as Rizzo. Marc Platt (“Wicked,” “Into the Woods”) is executive producer. Grease: Live is a Paramount Television production based on the original musical by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey, as well as the 1978 feature-film adaptation that may be the best-known version to most audiences.

“Thomas Kail’s brilliant directing work on the explosive ‘Hamilton’ and the cutting-edge ‘In The Heights’ showcase his groundbreaking talent for merging classic Broadway musical storytelling with contemporary song styles and narratives. His productions resonate profoundly with today’s audience and his sharp instincts make him the perfect director to bring Grease to a new generation,” said Platt, in a release.

“Alex Rudzinski brings a wealth of experience in live television directing,” Platt continued, “and has a modern sensibility and vision in creating entertainment that captivates his audiences.  We are enormously proud to have Thomas and Alex at the helm of re-imagining one of the most beloved musicals of all time.”

Grease: Live airs Jan. 31, 2016, on FOX at 7pm ET live/PT tape-delayed.

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