My daughter (9 years) and I like to spend time away from the boys in the house and have a girls night out once a month. Last week our "night out" was at the musical Hairspray. The evening was alive with an air of excitement because this was going to be her first musical and we are fans of the original John Waters film.
The story is set in 1962 Baltimore and Tracey Turnblad is a 'pleasantly plump' teenager who achieves her dream of dancing on a local TV dance show. Tracey uses her new found popularity as a platform to encourage intergration and makes some enemies and new friends along the way.
The cast exudes an energy that keeps the audience captivated during the two and half hour show. The set has a personality of its own and consists of giant LED screens that animates replacing traditional props and backdrops, allowing scenes to change instantly and keeps the musical fast paced. I found the screens at first overwhelming but I soon adjusted to the style.
The colours are vivid and bright, costumes are flamboyant and bold and the dancing and singing spectacular. Stand out songs for us were the energetic, "Welcome to the 60s" and "You can't stop the beat".
When I asked my daughter what she thought of the show she said, "Mum, I didn't like it... I loved it!"
- The performance runs for two and a half hours with a 20 minute interval
- The 8pm performance gave us a late night and if you are the taking the kids the matinee would be better suited.
- Performances contain strobe lighting, stage smoke, fog effects, LED screens and theatrical smoking
- The audience consisted of musical aficionados, families, couples and groups of friends young and old.
- If you want to see the movie before the performance - the John Waters original version is a lot of fun! (rated PG)
For more information on bookings, performance times and ticket prices visit: Hairspray, The Musical Until 7th August at Lyric Theatre, Star City
Director: David Atkins Cast: Trevor Ashley, Jaz Flowers, Grant Piro, Scott Irwin, Marney McQueen, Jack Chambers
