After weeks of auditioning, the selection of Danny’s and Sandy’s was finally narrowed down to one lucky guy and one lucky girl in the finale of NBC’s ‘Grease: You’re The One That I Want.” The competition came down to Ashley Anderson, Laura Osnes, Austin Miller and Max Crumm. Though the judges had the upper hand in previous rounds of the competition, it was America who had the final decision. The viewers chose Max and Laura to play Danny and Sandy in the Broadway revival of the hit musical, Grease.
What started out as your typical season finale for a talent competition turned into a pretty obvious promotion for a Broadway musical but then again, was this competition really about anything else? For weeks Danny and Sandy hopefuls have been taking the stage performing in the hopes of being chosen for the two starring roles in Grease. Each Sunday might, America could vote by phoning in or voting online. The following week the bottom two Sandy’s and Danny’s had the chance to perform one last time for the judges. The judges would then decide which Danny and Sandy would be sent home. So technically, for the bulk of the competition, it was the judges who had the final say. In the final round of the competition, the judges were rendered powerless and America was left to decide which Danny and Sandy should win this extremely lengthy audition process.
Though neither Max nor Austin had that signature “Danny” look, both were vocally talented. In the end, America went with slacker-boy, Max. His adorable charm won over the viewers if only slightly more than Austin’s more traditional good looks. Meanwhile, most would say that Ashley had the look of Sandy much more than Laura. Her blonde hair and bright green eyes definitely gave her a physical advantage over her competitor. But Laura has the voice, that Sandy-like innocence and ok, so she’s not blonde but she is certainly beautiful enough to carry the role.
Now that the competition is over, Laura and Max will get to rehearse with the rest of the cast of Grease in preparation for the show’s opening on Broadway this summer.
