In his The New York Times review, Frank Rich wrote: "...the show has become a desperate barrage of arbitrary musical numbers, portentous staging devices, extravagant costumes..., confused plot twists and sociological bromides..."[1] Grind eventually closed after a run of slightly more than two months, losing its entire $4.75 million investment.
The singers, dancers, comedians, and strippers who make up the ensemble of Harry Earle's Burlesque take the stage and welcome the audience (“This Must Be the Place”).
Leroy, a known playboy who has had affairs with many of the black chorus girls, flirts with Satin and orders ribs for the women.
Onstage, Gus performs a hospital sketch with Romaine (who plays a sexy nurse) and an actor referred to as The Stooge (“Cadaver”).
The sketch goes awry when Gus accidentally sticks The Stooge with a prop needle, which causes the actor to quit the show.
Dix is assured that none of the performers are violating color lines and is invited to take a look around to ensure this fact.
He leads the stranger downstairs to the white dressing room and offers him a bottle of whiskey, which Doyle eagerly accepts.
Mrs. Faye, who appears in the alley, makes it clear that she does not want her daughter's money, as it has been earned working at the burlesque venue.
They present an upside down cake prepared by Romaine but Mrs. Faye, incensed, denounces the party so that she may focus on her ironing.
A quartet of white PUNKS confront the group and destroy the bike, calling Doyle a “n***er lover”.
Leroy is unable to process the situation and escapes into the first act's closing number (“This Crazy Place”).
Though she is reluctant to accept, Satin agrees to sit in the white dressing room with Romaine and talk about the birthday party.
Leroy shows up with a receipt for a replacement bike but Satin rejects his offer, insisting that he can't “keep smilin’ everything away”.
Doyle promises to help his new partner, seeing as Gus was the one to pull him out of the alley and give him a reason for living.
Doyle is shown standing next to a funeral wreath as Maybelle and the company mourn the death of Gus (“These Eyes of Mine”).
Satin realizes that the only spot she hasn't checked is the alley and is horrified to find a drunken Doyle being beaten by STREET TOUGHS.
Sitting up in bed, he catatonically reveals how, when he was living in Ireland, he made a bomb intended to kill British soldiers on a train.
The chorus girls appear onstage with Satin and Leroy proceeds to humiliate her, ripping off her wig and g-string in front of the audience.
The Street Toughs are defeated and the company triumphantly crosses the color barrier, vowing that they won't be segregated moving forward.
[7] According to New York Daily News columnist Douglas Watt, the show was in "serious trouble" during its out-of-town tryout in Baltimore.
A number of songs were taken out of the show during its tryout and New York previews, including "The Best," "La Salle Street Stomp," "The One I Want is Always on the Bottom," "Rabbity Stew" (which was eventually incorporated into Grossman's 1993 musical Paper Moon), "Rise and Shine" (whose music was eventually incorporated into the title song), and "You, Pasha, You".
[7] Grind opened on Broadway at the Mark Hellinger Theatre on April 16, 1985 and closed on June 22, 1985 after 71 performances and 25 previews.
[8] The cast included Ben Vereen (Leroy), Stubby Kaye (Gus), Lee Wallace (Harry), Joey Faye (Solly), Marion Ramsey (Vernelle), Hope Clarke (Ruby), Valarie Pettiford (Fleta), Candy Brown (Kitty), Wynonna Smith (Linette), Carol Woods (Maybelle), Sharon Murray (Romaine), Brian McKay (Louis, the Stage Manager), Oscar Stokes (Mike, the Doorman), Leonard John Crofoot, Timothy Nolen (Doyle), Donald Acree (Grover), Ruth Brisbane (Mrs. Faye) and Leilani Jones (Satin the stripper).
Knockabouts, Bums, and Toughs portrayed by Leonard John Crofoot, Ray Roderick, Kelly Walters, Steve Owsley, Malcolm Perry.