MMT Kicks Off 50th Anniversary With “Hairspray”

Hairspray (800x798)Mill Mountain Theatre opens its 50th Anniversary Season next month with one of America’s most popular and awarded musicals, Hairspray. It is a show known for light-hearted songs, spirited choreography and an underlining message about courage in overcoming prejudice.

“This is an appropriate way to mark our 50th anniversary because the story line of Hairspray is set in 1962, just two years before MMT opened atop Mill Mountain as Roanoke Summer Theatre,” said Producing Artistic Director Ginger Poole.  “It also is a reminder of the timeless nature of theatre because of its ability to transport audiences back into history through an engaging performance. Hairspray tells a story about a time when aspects of our lives were limited and unavailable because of race and other biases.”

The story is about an overweight teenage girl who wants to be a dancer on a local TV dance show. Along the way to becoming a celebrity, she encounters racial segregation.

Hairspray has been produced as a movie in 1988 and again in 2007.  The stage version opened on Broadway in 2003, won eight Tony Awards among other honors and had 2,642 performances.  Successful stage productions of the show also were produced in Argentina, Australia, China, Japan, Ireland and South Africa.

The show’s title is inspired by the lead character’s fondness for big hairdos and styles that involve bleaching and teasing.  “Through wigs, costumes and a colorful scenic design we will give audiences a trip down Memory Lane,” Poole said.

In addition to a 24-person cast plus a live orchestra,  a “star” of Hairspray will be Mill Mountain Theatre’s new main-stage sound system.  Since closing the 2014 season, all audio equipment has been updated.  “Thanks to grants from three foundations and gifts from supportive donors, we have replaced analog equipment, mostly manufactured in the 1970s, with digital systems that are state of the art for professional theatre,” Poole said.  “Our audiences will be amazed by the improved quality of sound at MMT.”

Hairspray runs April 29 to May 17 on the Trinkle Main Stage / Wells Fargo Auditorium at Center in the Square.  Performances are Wednesday through Saturday evenings at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m. Discount tickets are available during the first week of the schedule.

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