BWW Reviews: HAIRSPRAY Rocks Sydney's Lyric Theatre

Energetic, fun-loving, and dynamic, Hairspray is still delighting audiences at the Lyric Theatre, Star City in Sydney, as this reviewer saw while attending the show on Wednesday, 27 July.

Tracy Turnblad (Jaz Flowers) is a big girl with an even bigger heart, and when she secures a spot dancing on the local Corny Collins show, we are thrown with her into the tumultuous world of 1962: big hair, block patterns, and the civil rights movement. Directed and conceived by David Atkins (OAM), this Australian production of the much loved musical based on John Waters' film of the same name is a delightful tribute to the sixties.

In fact, that tribute begins before the show even starts -- and continues during interval. Projected through an image of a sixties television are snippets of 1960s pop culture, from nuclear bomb awareness public service announcements advising one to "Duck and Cover" from short sequences from, among others, I Love Lucy and The Lone Ranger. We are even treated to a newsreel of current events: Joe DiMaggio receiving a "heroes welcome" in Japan and President John F. and Jackie Kennedy receiving a record turnout greeting at Dallas airport. Clever and light, we can make no mistake: this is the early sixties.

With a strong cast and ensemble led by the effortlessly bubbly Flowers, we are introduced to Baltimore and Tracy's suburban life with flair. The innovative staging choices -- sets and backdrops projected onto interactive LCD screens - let us explore the world of the musical with colour and liveliness, a perfect marriage of retro and modern. This production has a knowing, impish twinkle in its eye, and that ethos is carried by each character and each direction. Marney McQueen's Velma Von Tussle and Renee Armstrong as her daughter Amber, are the perfect villainous team: highly comic and bold, as is Esther Hannaford's eager and fully physically realisEd Penny. Also of note is Australian Idol alum Cle Morgan, as Motormouth Mabel, who delivers a stirring 'I Know Where I've Been'.

The musical numbers are an experience of strong vocals and Jason Coleman's skilful, playful choreography, weaving together a colour palette of costuming that is cheerful and eye-catching, particularly during 'Welcome to the Sixties' (performed Wednesday night with especial gusto by Edna understudy Mark Simpson), 'I Can Hear the Bells' (with Jack Chambers' unapologetic, Link Larkin charm), and 'You Can't Stop the Beat', the triumph of the show: at Wednesday night's performance, audience were dancing in the aisles and singing along with the infectious closing number. 'You're Timeless to Me', in this production envisioned as a dance among the stars, was a crowd-pleaser; Edna and Wilbur were endlessly and increasingly endearing throughout the night.

Winner of over 30 prestigious theatre awards (Tonys, Grammys, Olivier Awards), the show leaves a long legacy of success, and this production doesn't miss a beat. It is a colourful celebration of kitsch that is perfectly camp, carefully flashy, and in turns both hilarious and heart-warming.

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