HAIRSPRAY - THEATRE REVIEW

PERFORMANCE REVIEWED: Monday 14 December 2015 (Gala Press Night)

The history of Hairspray is fairly widely known - it’s a big, bold and beautiful, yet ever-changing beast. From its origins as John Waters’ cult classic Rikki Lake and Divine vehicle, through to the enormous success of its musical adaptation on both Broadway and the West End, and the equally succcessful reimagining via Hollywood by way of choreographer-director Adam Shankman and a very game John Travolta, it has been retold and revisited in a surprising number of forms given its relative youth. What unifies all of them, however, is the inarguable fact that Hairspray in all of its guises is a consummate crowd-pleaser, easily one of the biggest musical success stories of the 21st Century, and to many the de facto poster show for feel-good musical theatre.

For what is now the show’s third UK Tour, reinvention, however incremental, is once again the name of the game for Just for Laughs Theatricals and Curve Theatre, current custodians of the show. This is a whole new production but still fundamentally the same Hairspray that you know and love - a warm-hearted, buoyant tale of young Baltimore teenager Tracy Turnblad on her quest to win the love of her life, survive 1960’s school life and the small matter of tackling racial segregation. Everything that makes it such a joyous, irrepressible slice of infectious musical fun is present and accounted for, but this is clearly Hairspray given something of a new spin. Most notably, it has been given a considerable design overhaul which, whilst something of a mixed bag, ensures this latest run is no mere cookie cutter fascimile of what has come before.

First and foremost, Paul Moore’s set design and, to a lesser extent, Philip Gladwell’s lighting, seem to aim for something slightly more period authentic and less heightened than the previous West End production (which also proceeded to go on tour). Gone are the almost cartoonish forced scale perspective of the streets of Baltimore, replaced in their stead with high rise facades, whilst the ‘Corny Collins’ TV set similarly feels a touch more dialled down and in keeping with the era as opposed to the onslaught of colour and whimsy that was on display in previous productions. If it feels a trifle jarring to have this review prefaced so heavily on the staging and set design for and foremost, then it’s worth bearing in mind so much of what defined the previous theatrical productions of Hairspray were their vim, colour and tongue-in-cheek overtness.

That isn’t to say this latest production necessarily looks bad by any means, but it would be remiss to not acknowledge that several of the key musical sequences and set pieces are here notably simplified or less impactful than what has come before, and this mostly has to be lain at the door of the set and staging and, occasionally, direction - ‘Good Morning Baltimore’, ‘Welcome to the Sixties’ and ‘Big, Blonde and Beautiful’ are all, for instance, notably less dynamic in their staging and impact - all playing out against almost identical backdrops for a start. It’s not a deal breaker by any means, and in other ways this more authentic approach works well with attention to detail in areas such as a series of 1960’s informercials playing during the interval, on video screens which are generally well used elsewhere throughout the show as well. For those who haven’t seen Hairspray before, it will likely be a moot point but, in much the same vein as some of the minor misfires and exclusions of the 2007 film, it’s sometimes difficult to shake the feeling that just occasionally this is a slightly less colourful and uncharacteristically pared-back take on Hairspray.

In other ways though, this is a production just as impressive, joyous and entertaining as ever before. A mostly fantastic cast, headed up by former ‘Tracy’ Freya Sutton, do a terrific job of making up for some of the visual shortcomings by putting in spirited, charismatic turns. Claire Sweeney is a deliciously vibrant and campy Velma, sultry yet almost serpentine, and mining every line and beat for all of it’s villainous or comedic potential. Sweeney might not be the strongest of vocalists, but it’s a strong, well-defined character turn, and she particularly throws herself with gusto quite literally headfirst into the characters’ side-splitting desperation and dismay during the rousing ‘You Can’t Stop The Beat’ finale. Actor / presenter Peter Duncan (of Blue Peter fame) channels his inner Christopher Walken and is adorably dotty as Tracy’s lovable, whacky father Wilbur, Lauren Stroud makes a hilariously bratty Amber Von Tussle, Tracy’s arch-nemesis and rival in all things love and dance-offs, and Dex Lee is a smooth-talking and even smoother-moving Seaweed.

The real stars amongst the cast, however, are undoubtedly veteran Brit actor Tony Maudsley and actress, singer and former X Factor contestant Brenda Edwards. Maudsley steps into drag (and sizeable padding) as Tracy’s mother Edna, and anyone even tangentially familiar with Hairspray will know of Edna as being the show’s MVP. Maudsley’s gravelly, initially grouchy performance offer shades of original Edna Harvey Fierstein (not least of all in voice) but it is a wonderful, lovable and frequently laugh-out-loud funny turn that is an absolute joy to watch throughout. Maudsley and Duncan’s ‘Timeless to Me’ duet midway through Act II in particular is one of the highlights of the entire show. Edwards, meanwhile, is an absolute force of nature from the moment she arrives on stage - dominating proceedings with not only a sassy, willful take on Motormouth Maybelle - part DJ, part crusader and campaigner for equality and integration - but absolutely tearing the roof off of the auditorium with both of her big numbers. ‘I Know Where I’ve Been’ in particular - Maybelle’s soulful, moving ode to the struggle for equality and those who have tried and been defeated before - is a stirring number in and of itself, and when coupled with Edwards faultless, searing vocals and heartfelt performance becomes almost overwhelmingly powerful.

In addition to the strong cast, the other key ingredients of what makes Hairspray such good fun are here - namely the core of Mark O’Donnell and Thomas Meehan’s witty, quirky book and Marc Shaiman and Scott Whittman’s fantastic, infectious music, the latter under the fantastic musical direction of Ben Atkinson. It’s difficult to think of a show in recent history which can boast such a strong line-up of instantly memorable musical numbers, and if there is a finale more upbeat, feel-good and joyous than ‘You Can’t Stop The Beat’, I have yet to see it.

So whilst this may not quite be Hairspray as we know it (or knew it), this almost certainly isn’t the first time the affirming, whacky adventures of Tracy Turnbland have been given something of a new ‘do. And whilst some of the visual and design shortcomings in particular fall a little short of what has come before, this is still one of the most easily recommendable musical theatre experiences out there - a four star production of a five star show, perhaps, but nevertheless still very definitely an industrial sized can of feel-good fun and utterly infectious musical joy.

RATING - ★★★★

HAIRSPRAY is running at the NEW ALEXANDRA THEATRE, Birmingham, from Monday 14th December 2015 through to Saturday 2nd January 2016.

CLICK HERE for more information on the show's run at the New Alexandra Theatre and to book your own tickets!

For more information on the UK tour and other venues it will be visiting, CLICK HERE.

Alternatively, telephone the theatre's booking line direct on 0844 871 3011.

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Press tickets for this performance of Hairspray were provided courtesy of the New Alexandra Theatre directly. The author gratefully acknowledges their generous invitation.