“Hairspray” is in rehearsal here at Henry Ford College these days, and if the music wafting down the hallways on Tuesday and Thursday evenings is any indication, we are in for a very good time.

This play, if you are not familiar with it, has a lot going for it. It’s funny, and it has catchy tunes and pleasant dance numbers. But there’s more to it than just this “pretty face.”

“Hairspray” is the story of young high school girls who are entranced with the “American Bandstand” style television show of the 1960s era. They race home every afternoon to listen to the latest hits and watch the lucky participants who get to come out and dance on the show. They dream of getting the chance to be on the show. There are the usual differences in opinion between some of them and their parents, but the main theme of the play revolves around the fact that the black kids, referred to in 1960s style as Negroes, throughout the play, are not allowed to dance with the white kids, and in fact, are isolated on their own “Negro Day” on the show. The play also addresses bias against people who are “pleasantly plump” and the ostracism that leads one character to restrict herself to her home.

Tracy Turnblad, the main character, becomes friends with some of the Negro kids and joins in their protest to be allowed full participation. She also helps her mother to accept the way she is and be happy in life, rather than worrying all the time about what the neighbors might say about her weight. Of course, being a comedy, all turns out well for the protagonists in the end (not so much for the antagonists).

“Hairspray” began as a comedy film by John Waters in 1988 and later became a hit Broadway musical, followed by another film in 2007 which starred Nikki Blonsky, John Travolta (as her mother!), Queen Latifah, Amanda Bynes, Elijah Kelly, Allison Janney, Christopher Walken, Zac Efron, and Michelle Pfieffer, among others.

Next issue: interviews with the director and some of the stars of HFC’s upcoming production of “Hairspray”.
Plan now to attend the play in April – posters are up everywhere with the details!