Reviewed by Tony Annicone
The Broadway show won 8 Tony Awards and is based on the 1988 John Waters film which starred Divine and Ricki Lake. The show is set in 1962 in Baltimore and is about teenager, Tracy Turnblad, a large girl with big dreams and even bigger hair who has an abundant joie de vivre and rhythm in every inch of her body. She will do whatever it takes to win a spot on the Corny Collins Show, a popular TV dance show, win the heart of Link Larkin, the show’s resident dreamboat and turn the town upside down in her efforts to racially integrate television.
The bigoted producer, Velma Von Tussle has “negro day” once a month and uses the show to promote her untalented daughter, Amber. Tracy meets Seaweed in detention and he teaches her the dance moves to win a spot on the show. To thank him for his help, Tracy decides to help integrate the show so Seaweed’s mom, Motormouth Maybelle can appear on it more than once a month. Tracy is helped along the way by her hard working mother, Edna, a woman of vast proportions and enormous heart and her father, Wilbur who runs a joke shop called Har-Dee-Har-Hut. Tracy’s dreams are fulfilled. wins the Miss Hairspray contest, defeats Amber and her bitchy mother and integrates the dance show, proving “You Can’t Stop the Beat.” It also can be a lesson learned for contemporary audiences to be more tolerant of people of other races, body sizes and creeds like those found in this show. Director Jeff Whiting knows how to put together a smash musical hit musical with high energy and excellent blocking. There are many show stopping moments along the way as well as dazzling dance numbers by Jeff and sensational musical direction by Milton Granger with an electrifying 12 piece orchestra. Their reward is a spontaneous standing ovation at the curtain call.
The multitude of gorgeous and fabulous costumes are by Kelly Baker and the magnificent 1960’s wigs and hairstyles which are extremely important to this show, are by Gerard Kelly. Leading this cast is Brooke Shapiro as Tracy. She makes this overweight girl into someone the audience can readily identify with and gains their love and admiration with her spunky and heartfelt portrayal. Her powerful voice excels in many numbers including “Good Morning Baltimore” which opens the show, “I Can Hear Bells”, a fall in love at first sight number, and “You Can’t Stop the Beat” when triumphs over all odds. Brooke not only sings wonderfully but dances up a storm in this role, too. I last reviewed her as Jan in “Grease” back in 2014.
Blake Hammond stars as Edna Turnblad, Tracy’s fun loving overweight mother usually played in drag by a man. He is a hoot in this role, stealing many a scene with his one liners and double takes. Blake gets to sing and dance in “Welcome to the 60’s” with three girls strutting their stuff like the Supremes, “Big Blonde and Beautiful” and “The Big Dollhouse” where all the women in town are in jail. At the end of this song Blake belts out “Like Me” ala Mama Rose from “Gypsy.” One of his funniest numbers is “Timeless to Me”, a vaudeville soft show which Blake does with Philip Hoffman as Wilbur. Their adlibs and patter during this number are brilliantly done as they stop the show with their rendition. Philip does a terrific job as the loving and supportive husband and father who wants both of his girls’ dreams to come true.
Marty McNamee plays Corny Collins, a young Dick Clark type who can sing and dance. His strong baritone voice leads the chorus in “Nicest Kids is Town”, “The Madison” where he discovers Tracy and “Hairspray” when Tracy wins the contest. Marty does an excellent job as the TV host who stands up to his pain in the ass producer. Tall, blond and handsome, Zane Phillips plays Link Larsen excellently. He is Tracy’s dancing dreamboat. Link is a wannabe Elvis who is using the TV show as a stepping stone to fame and fortune. He becomes a better person when he falls in love with Tracy. Zane handles the transition fabulously. His terrific voice is heard in duets with Brooke called “It Takes Two” and “Without Love.” Zane’s dancing is also marvelous and he and Brooke have a lot of chemistry together in these roles.
The villains of this show are the conceited and egotistical, Velma and Amber Von Tussle. Merrill Peiffer is fantastic as this dragon lady who runs roughshod over everyone at the TV station. She plays this bitchy, slutty mother to the hilt, sleeping with anyone to make her untalented daughter famous. She is reminiscent of Cruella DeVille. Her strong voice is heard in “Mama, I’m a Big Girl Now” sextet and in the tango like “Baltimore Crabs” where she proclaims all women have to be beautiful to get anywhere in this world. Her snotty, spoiled daughter Amber is excellently played by Marie Eife. Amber is untalented and lusts after Link throughout the show. Amber finally gets her comeuppance with her mother at the close of the show. Marie does a dynamite job in this role and is much more talented than Amber pretends to be.
The most amazing voice in this show belongs to Altamiece Carolyn Cooper as Maybelle. Her powerful voice soars off the charts with her bluesy, gospel numbers. Her first one is “Big, Blonde and Beautiful” when she encourages Edna to appear on TV and her second dynamic number is “I Know Where I’ve Been” which stops the show with well deserved thunderous applause. This song tugs at your heartstrings as Motormouth sings of acceptance and understanding of members of another race. This was a problem back in 1962 and is still one in 2018.
Playing Tracy’s best friend, Penny is the terrific Christina Emily Jackson. She is a triple threat performer who delivers the goods in this role. Christina sings and dances up a storm in the sextet number, the jail number “The Big Dollhouse”, “Without Love” is fabulous and in the finale where she is transformed into a hot looking babe. She utters another line from “Gypsy”, I’m a pretty girl, Mama. Motormouth’s son Seaweed is wonderfully played by Stephen Scott Wormley. This is his debut at NSMT and he delivers the goods as Seaweed. Stephen’s marvelous voice is heard in “Run & Tell That” and “Without You” with Christina. He is also a phenomenal dancer.
Kevin McGlynn and Cheryl McMahon do a tremendous job with their multiple roles in this show. Kevin as the principal, the dressmaker and the owner of the hairspray while Cheryl plays Penny’s bigoted mother, gym teacher and the prison matron. Little Inez is excellently played with sass and verve by Nazarria Workman who also shows off her strong dancing ability, too. The chorus members excel with their singing and dancing ability in this musical extravaganza. So for a trip back to the fun and carefree days of the 1960’s, be sure to catch this dynamite production of “Hairspray” North Shore Music Theatre. Tell them Tony sent you. A word of praise to the creative scenic designer Kyle Dixon and the return of Nate Bertone to NSMT as the assistant director. Kudos to producer Bill Hanney who spares no expense in bringing a Broadway style musical to audiences in Beverly, MA since 2010.
HAIRSPRAY (30 October to 11 November)
North Shore Music Theatre, 62 Dunham Road, Beverly, MA
1(978)232-7200 or www.nsmt.org
