HAIR Casting Call Converted Into Canned Food Drive, Giving Garden Live On Website

The producers of HAIR are embracing the show's spirit of generosity and community consciousness in unprecedented ways. The non-Equity open casting call being held today at The Public Theater has been turned into a massive food drive benefitting City Harvest, an organization dedicated to feeding New York City's hungry men, women and children. The producers of HAIR beseeched hopefuls attending the auditions to bring canned food to donate after learning of the City Harvest's unique needs this year following a lackluster collection this holiday season. When the doors opened at 9:00 AM this morning, the line of hopefuls stretched around the block with nearly everyone holding cans of food. Total donations are expected to top 1,000 pounds of food by day's end.

In partnership with revolutionary theater ticketing website, Givenik.com, the producers of HAIR have also turned their website, www.HairBroadway.com, into a fundraising mechanism with a new virtual "Giving Garden." Those who purchase tickets through the website can now donate 5% of their ticket price to a charity or organization of their choice. Current charities and organizations supported by the "Giving Garden" are City Harvest, The Public Theatre, Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, Seeds of Peace and Broadway Impact.

Oskar Eustis, Artistic Director of The Public Theater, commented, "HAIR is more than just a show; it's remarkable staying power results from reaching beyond the stage to envision a better way of living. The tragedy in Haiti once more reminds us that we are all connected, and that we must support one another in every way we can."

Fiercely committed to the fight for equal rights for the LGBT community, the cast of HAIR is receiving a special recognition by GLAAD for its "commitment to raising visibility for marriage equality" at a ceremony in New York City on March 13th, 2010. The Broadway company went dark on October 11, 2009 in order to attend the National Equality March in Washington, DC.

Directed by Diane Paulus and choreographed by Karole Armitage, HAIR features a book and lyrics by Gerome Ragni and James Rado and music by Galt MacDermot. HAIR began preview performances on March 6 at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre (302 West 45th Street, NYC) and opened to rave reviews on March 31, 2009. The story of a group of young Americans searching for love and peace during the Vietnam era, HAIR is a timeless portrait of a movement that changed the world. Its groundbreaking rock score paved the way for some of the greatest musicals of our time. Now, the "Age of Aquarius" dawns again in this jubilant new production, which is the winner of the 2009 Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical. The Drama Desk, Drama League, and Outer Critics Circle also recently honored the production with their 2009 award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical.

HAIR is presented on Broadway by The Public Theater (Oskar Eustis, Artistic Director; Andrew D. Hamingson, Executive Director) Jeffrey Richards, Jerry Frankel, Gary Goddard Entertainment, Kathleen K. Johnson, Nederlander Presentations, Inc., Fran Kirmser Productions/Jed Bernstein, Marc Frankel, Broadway Across America, Barbara Manocherian/WenCarLar Productions, JK Productions/Terry Schnuck, Andy Sandberg, JAM Theatricals, The Weinstein Company / Norton Herrick, Jujamcyn Theaters, Joey Parnes and by special arrangement with Elizabeth Ireland McCann.

Tickets for HAIR (starting at $37.00) are available via Telecharge.com or by calling (212) 239-6200. The schedule is as follows: Tuesday at 7:00 p.m., Wednesday at 2:00 & 8:00 p.m., Thursday - Friday at 8:00 p.m., Saturday at 2:00 & 8:00 p.m. and Sunday at 3:00. Ghostlight Records' New Broadway Cast Recording of HAIR is currently available in stores and on iTunes and as a limited edition re-mastered vinyl LP.