canmark
Active Member
One would think that with the Occupy protests fresh on the mind, the touring production of the musical Hair would be very timely. But it is not. In fact, Hair suffers from the fact that the freshly-scrubbed young actors on stage lack the edge that made (some) people slightly afraid of the unwashed Occupy masses and made many people afraid of the free-spirited, free-sex, anti-war, pro-drug young people prevalent in the ‘60’s and ‘70’s--and portrayed in Hair. Running up and down the aisles of the Royal Alex tousling audience members’ hair only made them seem less intimidating and more ‘up with people’ friendly. And so the show doesn’t really work because it has no edge. Songs were good, but like Glee cover versions, they have been drained of their original meaning.
While the musical Memphis may similarly suffer from a lack of authenticity, it makes up for it with characters one can care about. While I couldn’t feel anything for the layabout youths in Hair, I did feel for Memphis’s oddball Huey, who finally finds his niche in life as a white DJ playing black music in a segregated 1950’s Memphis, Tennessee. He also finds love in the ambitious black R&B/soul singer Felicia. But his own naïveté and fear of leaving the confines of his hometown doom him to an unexpectedly (for a musical) dreary fate. I actually overheard someone while leaving Hair saying how she would gladly see Memphis again rather than Hair (the discussion was on what show they would take some other friend or family member)--and I was inclined to agree. While they may not be performing it 40 years from now like Hair, Memphis was the more enjoyable show for right now.
While the musical Memphis may similarly suffer from a lack of authenticity, it makes up for it with characters one can care about. While I couldn’t feel anything for the layabout youths in Hair, I did feel for Memphis’s oddball Huey, who finally finds his niche in life as a white DJ playing black music in a segregated 1950’s Memphis, Tennessee. He also finds love in the ambitious black R&B/soul singer Felicia. But his own naïveté and fear of leaving the confines of his hometown doom him to an unexpectedly (for a musical) dreary fate. I actually overheard someone while leaving Hair saying how she would gladly see Memphis again rather than Hair (the discussion was on what show they would take some other friend or family member)--and I was inclined to agree. While they may not be performing it 40 years from now like Hair, Memphis was the more enjoyable show for right now.
Just missed out on the hair ruffling BTW.