Advertisement

Review: American Stage's park venue well suited for a peppy production of 'Hairspray'

 
The ensemble cast of Hairspray poses for a portrait on the set of Hairspray in Demens Landing Park on April 12, 2017. The annual American Stage in the Park performance runs through May 14th. EVE EDELHEIT   |   Times
The ensemble cast of Hairspray poses for a portrait on the set of Hairspray in Demens Landing Park on April 12, 2017. The annual American Stage in the Park performance runs through May 14th. EVE EDELHEIT | Times
Published April 26, 2017

ST. PETERSBURG — What do you want in a park production? Hopefully something fun, big and loud.

Even if that's not necessarily what you thought you wanted, Hairspray, American Stage's latest outdoor musical in Demens Landing, will convince you it is. The sheer force of talent in this lineup overcomes all obstacles — and there were a few — in a way that felt congruent and part of a package to be recommended.

This is a dance-heavy, song-celebratory, lavish birthday cake of an outdoor show. This team did not spare cost or effort, resulting in a lineup rich enough to absorb the occasional technical glitch, which should likely be resolved.

Elements in this show tend to line up. There's a theme of unapologetic bigness, from plus-sized heroine Tracy Turnblad to cartoonlike nemesis Velma Von Tussle, and a lack of subtlety generally. The same generalities and stereotypes that made the 1988 John Waters movie memorable stand out here. The kind of thinking that in 1962 could allow an American Bandstand-like show to produce a monthly "Negro Day," and frame that as an inclusive act, permeates the show in a remarkably nonjudgmental way. Wrap up that package with a band, unobtrusively tucked into the set and led by Michael Raabe, concert-strength amplifiers and a charming, functional period set by Jerid Fox, and you have the foundation of a show that can carry two acts.

But it's casting that pushes this Hairspray to the next level. Allyson Pace anchors the action as Tracy with all of the requisite naive enthusiasm and an ability to belt out those big themes, from Good Morning Baltimore on. Matthew McGee provides a fun counterbalance as Edna, Tracy's mother, stuck in the family's middle-class, 1950s island on the far end of the stage. Edna and Thomas Mothershed as novelty gag gift inventor Wilbur Turnblad have some ultimate cute-couple moments, as Tracy pushes tries to fight discrimination that keeps heavier kids sidelined and black kids out of sight.

The serious musical talent starts early and doesn't stop. All of the principals either get a slam-bang introductory number (The Nicest Kids in Town by Scott Daniel as the 1960s-slick Corny Collins, a deliciously wicked Miss Baltimore Crabs by Alison Burns as Velma), or a more powerful signature song later on (an out-of-the-park rendition of Run and Tell That by Deejay Young as Seaweed J. Stubbs, and a gospel strength I Know Where I've Been by Jayne Trinette as Motormouth Maybelle, Seaweed's mother). David Michael Bevis and Meredith Pughe also get out of the blocks nicely as Link Larkin, the Elvis-like high school heartthrob, and Amber Von Tussle, his pre-ordained girlfriend.

Planning your weekend?

Planning your weekend?

Subscribe to our free Top 5 things to do newsletter

We’ll deliver ideas every Thursday for going out, staying home or spending time outdoors.

You’re all signed up!

Want more of our free, weekly newsletters in your inbox? Let’s get started.

Explore all your options

There are many more (Nia Jamison-Sissle as Little Inez, Seaweed's sister, stands out in an ingenue role), too many to list, and that is a good problem to have. There were times on opening night when one cue pickup or another felt a tad slow or when an acting performance fell a bit short of the same performer's song-and-dance chops, as might have been the case with Bevis. And a static problem in the sound system persisted intermittently through the second act. The show itself has its goofy moments, like a jail sequence that seems to last a long time.

But really, those things are rough surfaces on a diamond. Hairspray is a terrific park production, and the cast rises up to conquer every challenge. The vocal strength alone, apparent individually up and down the lineup and as a chorus, is quite powerful. Walking back to the car afterward, I overheard two mothers of teenagers talking about how much they enjoyed the show. They were thinking about coming back, and bringing their kids.

Contact Andrew Meacham at ameacham@tampabay.com or (727) 892-2248. Follow @torch437.