Marquette's 'Hairspray' Is Anything But Static

Marquette High School will start its run of the musical Hairspray this weekend, when audiences can expect a slice of Broadway to grace the West County stage.

Originally a 1988 John Waters film, Hairspray tells the story of Tracy Turnblad, a character typified by a big build and bigger dreams. Set in the 1960s, the Baltimore teenager aspires to be a dancer on the sock-hop style TV program The Corny Collins Show. On her way to doing so, the audience learns about equality and acceptance.

“When I saw it on Broadway, I fell in love with it,” said Judi Greene, the theater director at Marquette and the show's overall supervisor. She said the greatest appeal of Hairspray is its message.

In fact, as part of the production, Greene and the cast discussed times they felt discriminated against, and how that related to the overarching message of the musical.

 “I love my character,” said sophomore Gabby Mancuso, who plays Tracy. Several other cast members echoed Mancuso’s enthusiasm, with "pumped" being the word of choice cast members used to describe their 11th-hour feelings. The cast also stated that each role has been highly personalized, so anyone expecting a re-enactment of the movie will be sorely disappointed.

The show has not been without its share of obstacles. Perhaps the largest issue was this winter's snow and ice. With more than a week's worth of canceled school days, production came to a complete stop, increasing the pressure on the cast and crew. The weather also hurt plans to utilize a Marquette alumnus who flew in from New York to assist with choreography, cutting her allotted time from two weeks down to one.

The second major hurdle? The show itself. Hairspray contains at least two songs for every scene. That put a high level of demand not just on the cast and supporting band, but also on the production team; at times, Marquette's production of Hairspray utilizes 24 onstage microphones, creating  technical challenges as sounds techs battle with quirky acoustics, tonal balance, bleed over, radio reception and countless other issues.

Virtually everyone involved agreed the show required incredible discipline, but remained confident that all the pieces would blend by Friday night.

Hairspray opens at 7 p.m. Friday, with performances at 7 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at Marquette High School, 2351 Clarkson Rd., Chesterfield. Next week's performances are at 7 p.m. March 10 through March 12. Tickets are $8 in advance at the school's Welcome Center and $10 at the door.