Good morning...London! Reviews are coming in for the West End revival of Hairspray at the London Coliseum. The production opened June 29 after performances began June 22.
Joining Olivier winner Michael Ball, who reprises his performance as Edna Turnblad, on stage are Lizzie Bea as Tracy Turnblad, Les Dennis as Edna’s husband Wilbur, Marisha Wallace as Motormouth Maybelle, Rita Simons as Velma Von Tussle, and Jonny Amies as Link Larkin.
The Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman musical is directed by Jack O’Brien and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell. The musical follows Tracy Turnbald and her friends as she achieves her dream of performing on a TV dance show in 1960s Baltimore, working to integrate the show in the process.
Check out the reviews below.
British Theatre Guide (Philip Fisher)
Evening Standard (Jessie Thompson)
LondonTheatre.co.uk (Marianka Swain)
The Telegraph (Claire Allfree)
Playbill will continue to update this page as reviews come in.
The ensemble includes Georgia Anderson, Kimani Arthur, Dermot Canavan, Lori Haley Fox, Mari McGinlay, Ashley Samuels, Michael Vinsen and Imogen Bailey, Pearce Barron, Jordan Benjamin, Joel Cooper, Luke George, Christopher Gopaul, Bradley Judge, Winny Herbert, Lily Laight, Madeleine Lawton, Holly Liburd, Will Luckett, Mireia Mambo, Kody Mortimer, Robyn Rose, Tinovimbanashe Sibanda, Amy West, and Natalie Woods.
The creative team features set designer David Rockwell, costume designer Wiliam Ivey Long, lighting designer Kenneth Posner, sound designer Steve C. Kennedy, music supervisor Alan Williams, and musical director Alan Berry, with original wigs and hair designer by Paul Huntley and orchestrations by Harold Wheeler. Casting is by Jill Green with Benjamin Endsley Klein as associate director, Dominic Shaw as U.K. associate choreographer and director, Andrew Keister as associate sound designer, Tim McQuillen-Wright as U.K. associate set designer, John Harris as U.K. associate lighting designer, Sabrina Cuniberto as costume supervisor, and Lily Mollgaard as props supervisor with U.K. wigs and make up designed by Richard Mawbey.
Hairspray is produced by Adam Spiegel Productions and Fiery Angel. The latest U.K. government guidelines on attending the London Coliseum require audiences to wear a face covering while in the theatre and to register attendance via the NHS track and trace app before entering the building. Full capacity performances are expected to begin July 21.
