GREASE The Musical High School

Grease takes place in and around the fictitious Rydell High School, class of 59, where Danny Zuko believes he is the coolest of the cool. Every high school had its Zuko - the self-appointed role model - in the late 50s. TV's Happy Days, which stared soon after Grease, exploited the same sort of character in The Fonz, the high school drop-out, played by Henry Winkler.

Jim Jacobs, co-writer of Grease, based Danny Zuko on someone he'd known at high school in Chicago. "He was a natural leader, good-looking and charismatic, but he peaked at school. It's sad to see kids who have been heroes at school reduced to menial jobs or, worse, unemployed and just hanging out."

Senior high school has its nearest UK equivalent in the sixth form college. Instead of sitting specific exams, American pupils automatically 'graduate' on completing 12th grade by a process of continuous assessment. The average 12th grader is anything up to two years behind the average English sixth former.

This is not seen by American educationalists as a particular disadvantage. They believe the social side of school life is as important as the academic.

Prom night, often featured in American movies and TV programmes, is a ball held at the end of the academic year for the class completing either junior or, more usually, senior high school. It is short for promotion (to the next level of study), and not to be confused with London's annually-staged prom (ie promenade) concerts.

The song 'Raining on Prom Night' captures the anxiety a lot of girls feel about this all-important social occasion. There is much status attached to your 'date', both for the girls and the boys. The tradition of prom night dating became the subject of national debate in the U.S in 1992 when a young lesbian couple decided openly to flout convention and go together.

All U.S. high schools and colleges publish a year book, recording events and achievements of the class in its previous three or four years.

Photographs of each student are accompanied by tongue-in-cheek captions, such as 'most likely to become president' or 'most likely to travel to the moon'.