Hit Musical HAIRSPRAY Opens July 8 at SIUE Summer Showbiz
HAIRSPRAY, winner of eight Tony Awards including Best Musical, will be on stage at 7:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday, July 8-9 and July 15-16 as well as Sundays, July 10 and 17 at 2:00 p.m. in the Dunham Hall Theater on the campus of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.
HAIRSPRAY is an American musical with music by Marc Shaiman, lyrics by Scott Wittman and Shaiman and a book by Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan. The production is based on the 1988 John Waters film Hairspray.
The songs include 1960s-style dance music and “downtown” rhythm and blues. In 1962 Baltimore, Md., plump teenager Tracy Turnblad's dream is to dance on The Corny Collins Show, a local TV dance program based on the real-life Buddy Deane Show. When Turblad wins a role on the show, she becomes a celebrity overnight and meets a colorful array of characters.
General admission is $15 for adults and $12 for alumni, retirees, faculty, staff and non-SIUE students with school identification. SIUE students with valid identification are free, courtesy of SIUE’s Campus Activities Board. Discounted tickets are available for groups of 10 or more with an advanced order.
For tickets, call the Summer Showbiz Box Office at 618-650-2774 or toll free at 888-328-5168, extension 2774. The box office is located in Dunham Hall, room 1042B. For more information, visit siue.edu/artsandsciences/theater or send a message to theater-tickets@siue.edu.
As part of SIUE’s Summer Showbiz productions, HAIRSPRAY is directed by Kate Slovinski, musical director by Joel Welch, set design by Roger Speidel, costume design by Nina Reed, lighting design by Valerie Goldston, sound design by Conner Jones, choreography by Shannon McCarkel and the stage manager is Abagail Polley.
The cast consists of SIUE faculty and students, along with local actors from the community, such as Ashley Miller-Melton as Tracy Turnblad, Keith Wehmeier as Edna Turnblad, Ian Hayden as Wilbur Turnblad, Clayton Humburg as Link Larkin, Jasmine French as Motormouth Mabel, Michael Hawkins as Seaweed Stubbs and Roger Speidel as Corny Collins.
HAIRSPRAY also won the Tony Award Best Book, Tony Award Best Score, Drama Desk Outstanding Musical, Drama Desk Outstanding Book, the Drama Desk Outstanding Music and the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical.
SIUE’s Summer Showbiz presents four plays during its May to July summer season. All productions are open to the community at large. The Department of Theater and Dance is part of the College of Arts and Sciences.
Central to SIUE’s exceptional and comprehensive education, the College of Arts and Sciences has 19 departments and 85 areas of study. More than 300 full-time faculty/instructors deliver classes to more than 8,000 undergraduate and graduate students. Faculty help students explore diverse ideas and experiences, while learning to think and live as fulfilled, productive members of the global community. Study abroad, service-learning, internships, and other experiential learning opportunities better prepare SIUE students not only to succeed in our region's workplaces, but also to become valuable leaders who make important contributions to our communities.
Photos courtesy by Valerie Goldston:
L-R: Reagan Deschaine (Velma Van Tussle), Clayton Humburg (Link), Ashley Miller-Melton (Tracey) and Taylor Keel (Amber Van Tussle).
