On April 3rd, 4th, and 5th at Danbury High School, Students put on the production of Hairspray. Hairspray is a musical about a plus sized teenage girl named Tracy Turnblad whose dream is to dance on “The Corny Collin’s Show”. When she finds herself in trouble. Black students teach her some dance moves that allow her a spot onto the show. With her new influence, she advocates for racial integration on the show which only causes backlash in the form of bullying from the network producer and her daughter Amber. She uses the help of her friends Heartthrob Link, The host Corny Collins, and Motormouth Maybelle to overcome these obstacles and integrate the show in the end. The musical continues to be so popular in recent days because of its advanced ability to portray a message of acceptance and progress with racial disparity, along with the ability to challenge societal norms and embrace individuality.
There were many actors, crew members, and people who helped put it all together for the production of Hairspray, from rehearsals, learning and teaching choreography, and making all the technology work smoothly. To prepare for the show they had too, “Regularly communicate rehearsal plans with the production team to keep everyone on the same page.” Said the director Dan Scalfani, as well as, “Be flexible, knowing my initial thought may not be the right fit. Be o
pen to change and experimenting with different ideas”. Though overall the most important thing for him was being honest, working hard, and “Communicate communicate communicate”. The actors in the play worked very hard to prepare as well, some things they did to prepare were “LOTS of rehearsals. A few a week; usually going to 4:45, until tech week.” said Spencer Summers, an actor in the play who played Corny Collins. Another actor, Grace Guasco, said to prepare they were “constantly doing vocal warm ups, going over the script, and practicing”.
Though the whole show was amazing, these people who worked hard on the show have their favorite parts. “That’s easy… off-stage it was working with the students and production team. Great people who were as passionate as me” said the director Dan, “On-stage, seeing the cast and crew succeed. Their pride in a job well done fed mine.” And the actors had many favorite parts as well! Things like, “getting to sing and dance with her friends on stage” or “My favorite part about this year’s production was the show itself.” So in all, Danbury High School’s production of Hairspray was an enjoyable and amazing experience, for the people involved in the show, and for those watching.
