Stage: 'Hair' Still Matters http://www.sanluisobispo.com/ticket/story/473525.html
Studio Players production has the youthful energy and messagethat made the musical a Broadway hit more than 40 years ago Sep. 18, 2008 By Joan Crowder The frenetic, tuneful Studio Players production of "Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical" can be seen as a colorful period piece. But it is more. It's a reminder of the hopes for peace and love in the 1960s that linger today. Has it really been 41 years since "Hair" stormed Broadway? Well, look at Bob Dylan and Mick Jagger, both mentioned in the musical, and you'll realize it's true. When the colorful hippie antiwar musical premiered it was called scandalous, sacrilegious and profane. It was laced with sex and drugs, references to homosexuality and racism, and it shocked audiences with nudity. But it was also termed fresh, new, uninhibited and free. Evolving events and attitudes during the intervening years have dulled the show's cutting edge, but its youthful energy is as sharp as ever. The antiwar statements (Vietnam then) live on in the face of another unpopular war. Some of the four-letter words that shocked audiences then are commonplace now, but other four-letter words, like love and life, are as important as ever. And the music, by Galt MacDermot, with lyrics by Gerome Ragni and James Rado, who co-starred in the original, is rousing and memorable. Some of the more than 30 songs, such as "Aquarius," "Good Morning Starshine" and "Let the Sun Shine" have become pop-rock classics. The 10 members of the Studio Players cast, directed and choreographed by Shannon Lowrie, are just enough to make the small theater rock with song and dance. A mirrored wall perpendicular to the stage makes the theater and the stage appear larger. The audience is seated at tables, where complimentary wine or beer is served. Cast members often leap from the stage or enter from the rear to interact with the audience. Unlike the film version of "Hair," which has a detailed story line, this production is mostly music and dance numbers, linked together by the basic story. The characters' fictional backgrounds are mentioned in the playbill. Claude and his friends Berger and Sheila hang out in Central Park with a tribe of hippies that includes Woof, a man of questionable (or changeable) sexual orientation, pregnant Jeanie, black militant Hud, rather goofy Steve, former gospel singer Dionne and her friend Mary, and winsome Crissy. Claude receives a draft notice to become a soldier in the war he opposes and fears. What will he do about it? While he ponders his fate, he and the tribe get stoned and sing about war, peace, freedom and happiness. Jake McGuire, who is the show's music director, plays Claude. He has a fine voice for such moving songs as "I Got Life," "Where Do I Go?" and one of the best, "What a Piece of Work is Man." As, Berger, Nik Johnson is the live wire in the cast. With puckish charm and manic energy, Berger makes things happen on-and offstage. You almost expect him to pass a joint around the audience. Marnie Knight is good as the earth mother, Sheila, and Jenifer Perry is sympathetic as the rather confused mother-to-be. The funniest member of the cast is Dug Baker, who plays Woof. He gets the most laughs, however, in drag as Margaret Meade, coming to study the hippies, and even funnier as Scarlett O'Hara in Berger's weird drug dream about the history of war. Matt Dodds plays Steve, who's infatuated with Mick Jagger and sings "Sodomy." Trevor Roberts sports an Afro to play Hud. Rebecca Nightingale as Dionne has a strong voice, and Paige Martell is sweet as Crissy. Brooke Martell is good as a singer and dancer in the ensemble. In this version, no one gets naked. To invoke the era and the antiwar stance, the show opens with projected images of the Vietnam War, accompanied by Bob Dylan singing "Times They Are a- Changin'." Times have changed, but some things have not. "Hair" still resonates, and it's great fun. . --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Sixties-L" group. To post to this group, send email to sixties-l@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/sixties-l?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
