The wildly successful musical, upon which no shortage of praise has been heaped – it already took home eight of its thirteen Tony Award nominations – is at its heart a commentary on society in America during the 1960s.
The story focuses on a Baltimore teenager’s dream to appear on a local TV dance show – based on the real-life Baltimore dance program The Buddy Deane Show.
After winning a spot on the show, she’s catapulted to the heights of celebrity. Instantly this big-haired teenager is the latest and greatest thing to hit the dance floor – and that’s when she sets her sights on wining leading man Link Larkin’s heart and racially integrating the show.
The musical adaptation of Hairspray came after John Waters’ 1988 film of the same name, which featured stars and semi-stars like Ricki Lake in the lead role of Tracy Turnblad and famed comedic actor Jerry Stiller as her father, Wilbur.
Hairspray was met with instant success in 2002 when it was adapted for the stage by Mark O’Donnell and Thomas Meehan, with lyricist Scott Wittman and composer Marc Shaiman helping to breath life into this tour-de-force of 1960s nostalgia. By the time it was brought back to the silver screen in 2007, the cast line up included stars like Christopher Walken, John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer and Queen Latifah.
Thursday’s performance features Salt Lake City-born Brooklynn Pulver in her first national tour as the sassy and well coifed lead character, Tracy Turnblad. Jerry O’Boyle Dan Ferretti help out as Turnblad’s parents Edna and Wilbur.
Hairspray plays at the John Van Duzer Theatre beginning at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 7. To purchase tickets for the show, visit the Center Arts orTicket Office web sites.
To check out more about Hairspray the musical, visit their web site.