In 1988, John Waters unveiled one of his finest films, Hairspray. It was hailed as a masterpiece, an oddball romp through Baltimore’s proudly unfit and unwanted, tackling issues such as fat shaming and racism through a funhouse mirror of retro kitchyness. At the center of Water’s weird world was a warm heart that celebrated being different and shone a light on the absurdity of the fear of change and acceptance.
When the musical adaptation in 2002 arrived, I’ll admit I was perplexed. Could the high-production values of Broadway ever capture the gleeful messiness of Waters’ low-budget hit? More importantly, could anyone ever truly fill the shoes of the legendary Divine, who originated the role of Edna Turnblad.
While I’ve had my doubts about previous productions, the Santa Maria Civic Theatre’s production instantly won me over. The musical tells the tale of Tracy Turnblad (Grace Kitchen), a teenager obsessed with The Corny Collins Show and a young performer named Link Larkin (Kai Rosales). Tracy longs for a spot on the show but is thwarted by Velma Van Tussel (Christy Laschiver) and her daughter Amber (Becky Larson). Along the way Tracy’s best friend Penny (Libby Parker) falls in love with Seaweed (Jaime Espinosa) as they all fight to integrate the show.
Hairspray is filled with a lot of big, bold numbers that require impeccable breathing skills and the lungs of Superman. This especially holds true for the role of Tracy. Kitchen, a 16-year-old high schooler, exhibits a lot of power in her young voice and understands comedic timing (probably even harder to nail than some of the high notes).
One of the best things about the production is actor John Shade’s performance as Edna Turnblad. Divine brought something uniquely vulnerable and sweet to the role of Edna. Edna never felt like a caricature or a man trying to put on a dress to make a joke out of being a woman. Shade manages to bring the same heartbreaking humanistic touch to the performance, which to be quite honest hasn’t always been the case in other productions (I’m looking at you, 2007 movie version with John Travolta).
Shade understands the soul of Edna and how to make the role comical without feeling like a mockery. His performance of “(You’re) Timeless to Me” with Jim Dahmen (in his first musical) as Wilbur Turnblad is undoubtedly one of the best, funniest, and most touching numbers in the entire show.
Watching Motormouth Maybelle (Lynda Mondragon) belt out “I Know Where I’ve Been” a mere few hours after watching the devastation in Charlottesville was a powerful moment that was not lost on anyone sitting in that theater. Make no mistake, Hairspray is a deeply political story, made in the 1980s about the 1960s and rebooted in the 2000s. The issues it grapples with still reverberate today, and Mondragon carried that sentiment with every single note, never letting anyone forget what was going on in our country today.
The Dynamics (Kimberley Washington, Terielle Wilhite, and Noelle Mcghee-Westbay) are another group of stars. Watching them stomp their way through the aisles in sequined gowns and heels at the end of “Welcome to the ’60s” was a moment of pure triumphant joy.
Operating on a lower budget, the show manages to do something else quite spectacular. It cuts out a lot of the slick and gloss that made earlier productions lose something from Waters’ original. Watching dancers and actors, many of them untested or amateurs, play out the story of Baltimore’s lovable band of misfits hits a lot closer to the raw nerve Waters was exposing in his kitschy production.
In short, this is how you’re meant to enjoy Hairspray, without famous celebs fighting over space on a marquis or wearing designer couture. Hairspray is meant to be raw, imperfect, and slightly jagged around the edges. Plus, the “John Waters cameo” alone is worth buying a ticket for.
Arts and Lifestyle Writer Rebecca Rose can hear bells. Contact her at rrose@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Aug 17-24, 2017.
