Hairspray – Monday 11th November
Invited| Review by Robyn Watson
The only thing better than Hairspray… that’s … well nothing! Hairspray has always been one of my all time favourite musicals after the smash hit movie was released. I fell in love with its endearing storyline, catchy songs and its explosive energy. In my opinion, it has some of the greatest musical numbers of all time.
Hairspray is set in 1962 Baltimore, focusing on Tracy Turnblad, a plus-size teenager with big dreams of dancing on the popular Corny Collins Show. Her journey isn’t just about fame, she is passionate about racial integration on the Corny Collins Show, which, like much of Baltimore, is still segregated. She battles her way through many challenges such as detention, rejection from the evil Velma Von Tussle, building her Mother’s confidence back up, falling in love with teen icon Link Larkin and even being put in the Big Doll’s House.
Excitement filled the theatre as the opening beat began. The curtain revealed the iconic bed on stage and our Tracy belted out a tremendous rendition of Good Morning Baltimore. From the off, the energy was palpable on stage and the cast were ready to show us the kind of show we were going to witness. Every beat was hit ferociously with strong vocals and even stronger choreography. I loved the use of physical comedy throughout as well, you can see just how much craft Brenda Edward’s has put into creating this masterpiece. The flasher who lives next door and the rats around her feet were personal highlights- very cleverly done.
Katie Brace played the part of our leading lady perfectly. You can see she has really mastered her craft and put a lot of work into the characterisation of Tracy. Her facial expressions and physical comedy were on par with some of the best I have ever seen and she truly didn’t miss a beat throughout the whole show. An absolutely stellar job of how to be a leading lady whilst sharing the stage with others and giving them their chance to shine too. I really enjoyed the growl in her voice which she brought to this part, very different from how I’ve seen it before. Her energy did not falter and her singing voice was crystal clear. She was meant to play Tracy!
The staging was cleverly done with the rolling sets used for Tracy’s home and her Dad’s joke shop. The stand out was the brick wall where Penny’s home magically came out of – I was most impressed! During the Corny Collins show I loved how the live band was also revealed as this makes it much more personable when you can see where the live music is coming from. The band were terrific as well.
The backdrops were shown on an interactive screen and although I do think this is a clever use of technology and space upon the stage I was a little disappointed with the graphics which, from where we were seated, were blurry particularly during the moving scene in Welcome to the 60s. I will say the design of them was brilliant however. The use of some of the larger stage props such as the bed and the hairspray can were expertly manoeuvred on stage and looked spectacular. I also really enjoyed the use of lighting throughout the show particularly in the whimsical I Can Hear the Bells.
The choreography really shone throughout this whole show particularly by our members of the Corny Collins show. They hit every beat with vigour and hit us in the face with perfectly pointed toes and elongated arms. I don’t think they ever put a foot wrong. The moves were in perfect fitting of the 60s era and pieces together with clear vision and precision.
Our Link for the evening was played by the charming Olly Manley. Not only was he such an incredible dancer his voice was heavenly- as smooth as butter. I think I actually gasped at one point when he was singing It Takes Two. He had the whole heartthrob character down to perfection and looked amazing on stage too. I can definitely see why all of the ladies were swooning over him.
Link’s other half Amber Von Tussle was played by Issie Wilman who played this very unlikeable character well. She nailed the mean girl personality and her evil laugh was second to none. She had such clear diction and sang her song Cooties with great clarity although, I have to say it’s one of my least favourite songs in the show as it is just so mean! Her mother Velma Von Tussle was played by theatre royalty Joanne Clifton. After seeing Joanne play Fiona in Shrek I knew we were in for a treat. Her Miss Baltimore Crabs was a special treat with those growling vocals and all of her lifts- I mean who can actually sing that well whilst being held upside down? I was both jealous and impressed! It was lovely to see her playing a character which polarises her lovely, warm nature and I could see just how much fun she was having playing it.
Two of the standouts for the night had to be Motormouth Maybelle played by Vanessa Dumatey and Little Inez played by Katlo. Little Inez really did have a new way of moving and her own voice as she bounded ferociously across the stage. Motormouth gave such a motherly feel to her role and oozed sex in her rendition of Big, Blonde and Beautiful. Her voice was so powerful and dynamic and gave me chills during I Know Where I’ve Been. The end notes were outrageously good and she really is a true powerhouse of a performer.
The charming but slightly stupid Penny Pingleton was played by Freya McMahon and she did a stellar job with a surprisingly wonderful singing voice. Her star crossed lover Seaweed was played well by Shemar Jarrett. His dancing was truly superb but I couldn’t tell if there were some mic issues during Run and Tell That which was a real shame.
Corny Collins was played perfectly by Declan Egan and he had such a wonderful persona on stage. I always love Corny as he truly is such a good guy and Egan portrayed this perfectly. The Nicest Kids in Town and It’s Hairspray both sounded great.
Surprisingly for me, my least favourite song in the movie, You’re Timeless to Me, was my stand out of the whole evening. Edna Turnblad was played by Neil Hurst and Wilbur was played by Dermot Canavan. This pair are clearly seasoned professionals as they truly owned the stage in every sense. Dermot’s charm mixed with Neil’s comedy just worked in perfect harmony. Not only did the song sound vocally gorgeous it was absolutely hilarious. I loved how Neil accidentally broke character and this made the whole audience roar with laughter. I don’t think I’ve laughed so much in such a long time. Neil Hurst’s performance as Edna was truly stellar.
The costuming throughout the whole show was glorious. From the ratted wigs to the 60s swing dresses, every element and print was so typically on decade. The finale costumes for You Can’t Stop the Beat were amazing and the whole stage was an explosion of colour and sparkle.
I have waited to see this show professionally for an incredibly long time and boy, was I impressed. It lived up to every single expectation. From vibrant costumes to killer choreography and all of those crystal clear vocals this show really was a special evening for me. I left the Theatre Royal with the biggest smile on my face and I would go back every night this week if I could. If you are feeling the November cold this show will warm you up the whole way through. A masterclass of musical theatre.
Hairspray plays Newcastle Theatre Royal Mon 11 – Sat 16 Nov.Tickets can be purchased at www.theatreroyal.co.uk or from the Theatre Royal Box Office on 0191 232 7010.