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Review: Hairspray at ZACH Theatre
Hairspray is about as campy and uncomplicated as a musical about racism can get. If you aren’t a John Waters or Amanda Bynes fan, there are two worlds in Hairspray: the white, white world of the 1960s Baltimore suburban Soul Train, The Corny Collins Show, and the other side of the tracks where black kids come up with the dance moves you see on the corny dance show. Tracy Turnblad, the plucky, plus-sized heroine, charges through race barriers and saves the world through song and dance. ZACH’s production is faithfully bright, tacky, shallow and fun with an open set that they pack full of a staggeringly talented ensemble and several amazing standouts.
Wednesday, June 16 - Sunday, August 28
Zach Scott Theatre Center (1510 Toomey Rd)
$20, 8pm Wednesdays - Sundays
[info] | [tickets]
This show is all about big numbers, and ZACH delivers. These kids can dance, they can sing and some can do both. Warren Freeman, the ringleader of the whitest, er, Nicest Kids You Know, brings a lot to the show vocally and his ensemble of singers and dancers are amazing. And no one would have minded if Joshua Denning, who has to be the hottest Seaweed J. Stubbs ever, wanted to just dance with the character's friends for a couple hours. The costume designer’s work on Denning’s pants alone is worth the price of a ticket.
Brian Coughlin, who plays Tracy’s mother, Edna, joyfully hit comedic, emotional and musical notes throughout the entire show and, thankfully, Edna’s fatsuit moved like a person’s body would move, which is high praise for a fatsuit. Jill Blackwood is a hilarious Velma Von Tussle who carries quite a lot more of the show than you would expect of a villain. The real vocal talent was, unsurprisingly, found in Motormouth Maybelle’s record shop. Janis Stinson, Motormouth herself, and Tiffany Mann, a member of the girl group the Dynamites, together provided the real surprise of the show when they convincingly rally their allies never to quit fighting. Brooke Shapiro as Tracy Turnblad is a cheerleader of an actress who belts every note from the top of the show til the end and, thankfully, is able to back up the show’s claims that this white girl really can dance.
Hairspray isn’t a show without problems; chiefly among them is a script that never lets the audience believe that the characters are in trouble. There’s very little motivation from one scene to the next except the hope that the singing and dancing stays as good as the last number. If you aren't a musical person, you may find little to enjoy here. You won’t worry about what’s going to happen, because the unshakable optimism of Hairspray’s book reassures the audience that every single character is going to get everything they’ve ever wanted by the end of the show. And, incidentally, there are only a couple moments of cringeworthy white person wish fulfillment where a black character seems a little too pleased that the white people like them so much.
If you’re a fan of the original John Waters film, there are few things you will recognize in this musical. It trades Divine for the chills you get when Edna gets her quickchange makeover. Instead of The Cockroach, you get cooties. But the camp and the cheese are still just as fun as before, and in fact much of the humor is punched up from the original. As embarrassing as it is to admit, it felt great watching a couple dozen frenzied actors scream-singing about equality and social justice on the same Pride weekend as New York legalizing same-sex marriage. The lyric, “you cannot stop the rhythm of two hearts in love” felt less like a machine gun firing off whatever words would make an audience of musical theater fans feel good about themselves and more like a promise. Hairspray returns you to your gentrified neighborhood feeling utterly satisfied, not ready to hit the pavement determined to tear down systems of oppression. After all, it’s a musical. But the amount of talent and fun fun fun in the show is worth seeing, even (especially?) for the most cynical among us.
