On 20th anniversary tour, musical 'Hairspray' remains surprisingly relevant

Despite some of the characters' propensity for engulfing themselves in puffs of (presumably fake) styling mist, "Hairspray" is still a breath of fresh air.

With its 20th anniversary North American tour, the relentlessly tuneful and positive musical proves the premise of its signature song: "You Can't Stop the Beat."

The boisterous opening show in OKC Broadway's 2022-2023 season — which will continue with such anticipated titles as the Tony and Grammy winner "Hadestown," the stage version of the Disney blockbuster "Frozen" and the return of the pop-culture phenomenon "Hamilton" — "Hairspray" plays through Sept. 11 at the Civic Center Music Hall.

'Hairspray' proves surprisingly relevant with 20th anniversary tour

Helmed by original director Jack O’Brien and original choreographer Jerry Mitchell, the 20th anniversary tour of "Hairspray" remains surprisingly relevant — and blessedly uplifting in light of many of the dismal headlines nowadays.

With a book by Mark O’Donnell and Thomas Meehan, an original score by Oscar nominee Marc Shaiman and lyrics by Shaiman and Scott Wittman, the 2002 musical was adapted from John Waters' iconic 1988 film.

The musical, which won eight 2003 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, was adapted into another film released in 2007.

Set in Baltimore in 1962, "Hairspray" follows "pleasantly plump" teenage dreamer Tracy Turnblad (Niki Metcalf) whose fondest wish is to earn a spot on the local television dance program "The Corny Collins Show."

Although her optimistic father Wilbur (Ralph Prentice Daniel) urges her to go for her dreams, Tracy's plus-size mother, Edna ("RuPaul's Drag Race" standout Andrew Levitt, aka Nina West), tries to dissuade the teen from trying out for the show. Edna knows it's tough out there for bigger gals, and wants to shield Tracy.

Accompanied by her ditzy yet loyal pal Penny Pingleton (Emery Henderson), Tracy auditions. But the other dancers, led by the snooty Amber Von Tussle (Ryahn Evers) mock Tracy's size, and Amber's mother, the show's prejudiced producer Velma Von Tussle (Addison Garner), rejects Tracy and Black candidate Little Inez (Joi D. McCoy) without even letting them dance.

Tracy gets another opportunity when she crosses paths with Little Inez's brother, Seaweed J. Stubbs (Charlie Bryant III), whose mother hosts the monthly "Negro Day" on "The Corny Collins Show."

Seaweed teaches Tracy some slick dance moves, and she uses them to impress Corny Collins (Billy Dawson) when the TV host emcees a school dance. Corny adds Tracy to the cast of the show, where she manages to catch the eye of Amber's heartthrob boyfriend Link Larkin (Nick Cortazzo).

Tracy also raises eyebrows when she declares that she wishes every day could be "Negro Day" and sets her sights on integrating the show, despite resistance from the Von Tussles and sponsor Harriman F. Spritzer (Greg Kalafatas), owner of Ultra Clutch Hairspray.

Musical is as unabashedly gaudy as its protagonist's bouffant hairdo

As unabashedly gaudy as Tracy's multihued bouffant hairdo, "Hairspray" is voluminous with outlandish set pieces, flamboyantly fabulous costumes and cheerfully bawdy humor. But it's also surprisingly sweet and timely with its storylines encouraging body positivity and speaking out against racism.

The second leg of the tour only kicked off this month, which might account for some noticeable missteps at the Sept. 7 performance: The show started 20 minutes late, and the orchestra frequently drowned out the singers. Still, the energetic ensemble capably sang and danced its way through out the fast-paced crowd-pleaser.

Metcalf proved a winning heroine from the opening number, "Good Morning Baltimore. Levitt and Daniel teamed up to steal the show with the romantic yet cheeky interlude "(You're) Timeless to Me," only to have Lee stop the show with the rousing Civil Rights anthem "I Know Where I've Been." (It's a shame Levitt is only set to play Edna in OKC at the Sept. 6-7 performances; Kalafatas is slated to take on the role for the rest of the shows at the Civic Center).

To cap it all off, the bouncy "You Can't Stop the Beat" was so much fun the cast delighted the audience by reprising it during the bows.

Although it's sad that the musical's themes of accepting and including people despite their outward appearances should still be so prevalent 20 years after the show debuted, "Hairspray" is still a breezily welcome reminder that "You Can't Stop the Beat" of progress.

'HAIRSPRAY'

When: Through Sept. 11.

Where: Civic Center Music Hall, 201 N Walker.

Tickets and information: www.okcbroadway.com or 877-737-2929.

Features Writer Brandy "BAM" McDonnell has covered Oklahoma's arts, entertainment and cultural sectors for The Oklahoman for 20 years. Reach her at bmcdonnell@oklahoman.com, www.facebook.com/brandybammcdonnell and twitter.com/BAMOK. Support her work by signing up for her See & Do Oklahoma newsletter and subscribing to The Oklahoman.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: 20 years later, musical 'Hairspray' still a breath of fresh air in OKC