Review: Secret Cinema's Grease The Immersive Movie Musical

Secret Cinema's latest staging of Grease is an all-singing, all-dancing spectacle, and a radical departure from the usual Secret Cinema format.

Photo: Luke Dyson

After a nearly three-year-long absence, Secret Cinema returns to London with a new large-scale production, recreating Rydell High for an all-singing, all-dancing version of the 70's classic, Grease. The film is well-trodden ground for Secret Cinema, who have adapted it twice before, but this 2025 production, which takes over Evolution in Battersea Park for a 6-week run, is a radical departure from the company's previous stagings, and a very different kind of experience from what the company are best-known for.

It's been a quiet couple of years for Secret Cinema. Following their original, family-focused festive show Wishmas, which was staged at The Vaults in Waterloo in late 2023, Secret Cinema appeared to be lying low. There was radio silence on their social media, no new productions, and the only news to come from the company focused on Studio Secret Cinema, a new arm of the business which produces brand activations.

According to Secret Cinema's Matt Costain, who serves as Creative Director for Grease: The Immersive Movie Musical, this silence was for good reason. Throughout 2024 and early 2025, the company spent a considerable amount of time trying to determine what its place within London's rapidly changing immersive scene is, and looking at how to continue producing the kind of large-scale shows they’re known for, but more sustainably.

The result of that soul-searching is the debut of a new format for the company, described internally as the 'one-world model'. The dozens of individual rooms and secret spaces most people have come to expect in Secret Cinema shows have been replaced with a large, open venue that is entirely accessible to every visitor. Alongside this, the structure of the experience has also been reworked from the ground up...

Photo: Luke Dyson

Long-time Secret Cinema fans will be familiar with the formula used in past productions. Audience were free to explore elaborate sets, interact with a large cast and witness recreations of key moments from the show's source material for several hours, before a grand finale and a seated screening of the film that the cast would perform alongside. For Grease: The Immersive Movie Musical, these two distinct halves have been combined, with cast interactions happening alongside the screening, which is now the focus on the experience.

The experience begins with the audience gathering in the outdoor fairground. Alongside carnival games, bars, food vendors and a Ferris wheel, there's a full-size funhouse. Towering over the space is a huge screen that plays a series of archival movie clips and in-world announcements. With doors opening 90 minutes before the screening begins, there's plenty of time afforded to guests to eat, drink and explore, but beyond a handful of roaming characters welcoming the audience to their first day at Rydell High, there's no meaningful interaction with the cast on offer and no recognisable faces from the film.

Photo: Luke Dyson

After the opening scene of Grease plays on the outdoor screen, the audience is ushered inside, where the scope of the show's new format is revealed. On two sides of the space, there's VIP seating split between a tiered drive-in, complete with dozens of vintage car bonnets, and a recreation of Frosty's Palace. In the centre sits a huge raised stage, where much of the action takes place, alongside a recreation of the Rydell Autoshop, the National Bandstand stage, cafeteria tables and sports bleachers. Regardless of where the audience is within the cavernous space, there are good sightlines to all of the action, but guests are encouraged to roam and follow the cast as they perform in all four corners of the venue.

As the film plays out on a number of screens hanging from the ceiling, there's a black and white live feed of the on-stage action also shown, allowing audiences to see the smaller details in the cast's performances, especially during the musical numbers, which are all performed with live vocals. All of the big moments from Grease are faithfully recreated, including a showstopping performance of 'Greased Lightnin' on the centre stage that sees a red Ford De Luxe descend from the ceiling, and Danny (Liam Morris) suspended above the stage, flexing his muscles to huge cheers.

The show's rendition of 'Summer Nights' sees the Pink Ladies and T-Birds in opposing corners, duetting back and forth from the bleachers and cafeteria table, and 'Look At Me, I'm Sandra Dee' sees a huge four-poster bed move around the venue as Rizzo (Lucy Penrose) pokes fun at Sandy (Stephanie Costi). Jennifer Weber's choreography builds upon the film's original dance routines, adding a modern touch to these iconic scenes, and all of the show's numbers are wonderfully staged. It's a notable step up from the staging in the Birmingham adaptation of Grease back in 2023, and it far exceeded our expectations going in.

Photo: Danny Kaan

In terms of interaction, there are plenty of opportunities for the audience to get involved if they want to. Multiple scenes see members of the audience being pulled up on stage, including the National Dance Off and the Pink Ladies' sleepover, where guests can watch the scene on stage alongside the cast, surrounded by pillows and blankets. A Rydell High choir is quickly formed to sing on stage, and select audience members are picked out of the crowd to become silver-roller-wearing angels during 'Beauty School Dropout'. Alongside this, there are passing interactions with the cast as they move around the venue, including, in our case, a brief chat about Danny and Sandy's relationship with Principal McGee (Colleen Daley). Most of these opportunities are open to all, regardless of ticket type, but those with 'VIP Immersive' tickets are also treated to a pre-show experience where they're taught some of the show's dance routines alongside the cast, giving them added confidence for their moments in the spotlight.

Photo: Danny Kaan

As a first outing for this new format, there are a couple of things that could be tightened up, but on the whole, it's a massively successful change in direction for both the company and their future productions. With Grease: The Immersive Movie Musical, Secret Cinema have delivered an engaging and confident communal experience for audiences that also happens to be one of London's best nights out this summer, and firmly re-established itself as one of the city's best immersive producers.

It's good to have them back.

★★★★½

Interview: Secret Cinema's Matt Costain on Grease: The Immersive Movie Musical

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Grease: The Immersive Movie Musical runs in Battersea Park until 7th September 2025. Tickets are priced from £49.00 per person. For more info and to book tickets, visit greasetheimmersivemoviemusical.com

For more reviews of immersive experiences like Secret Cinema's Grease, check out our recent Reviews.