'Hairspray' offers rollickin' good time

"HAIRSPRAY," SCERA Showhouse, though Oct. 4 (801-225-2787 or www.scera.org); running time, 2 hours 30 minutes (one intermission)

OREM — If you're looking for something bouncy and fun that has a positive message, "Hairspray" might be your ticket.

This Broadway musical about breaking down racial barriers has heart.

The music rocks and the plot — which deals with the problems inherent of discrimination (whether it be for size or color) — is one that moves along with a good amount of realism.

Even though the pleasingly plump star of the show — Tracy Turnblad (played winningly by Heather Burgess) — gets on a TV show she watches religiously and catches the eye of the crooner she adores without any trouble at all, it's all right because it works for the story.

Eric Harper plays her mother, Edna Turnblad, in the part John Travolta made famous in the movie. Harper does it deftly, dropping his voice to a masculine level when it suits the situation and carrying off the part of a plus-size overprotective mama with ease.

"It's just us girls in the big doll house!" she moans from behind bars.

Andrew Joy makes a hunky Elvis-style heartthrob, and Tierra Jean is as excellent Motormouth Maybelle Stubbs.

The highlight of the show (besides Burgess) is Elijah Thomas as Seaweed J. Stubbs. He portrays the black singing and dancing dude with finesse, and yet there's no sense of cariacature.

Whitney Norman, the white girl who falls for Seaweed, is also good.

The Dynamites (can you say Supremes?) add class and nice vocals.

The ensemble as a whole deserves high praise, along with director Shawn Mortensen. The singing and dancing is energetic and inviting. (It can't have been easy to choreograph the multiple dance scenes with such a large cast.)

This is a bold show that intrigues right from the start as a little dog is walked across the stage and exploding gum balls detonate inside the set.

It's lively with just enough ribald and politically slanted humor to keep the audience a little surprised and paying attention.

"Where do you go after Special Ed? Congress!"

The costuming is right out of the retro closet, and the set, though simple, is the perfect backdrop for the action.

The crazy hairdos for the finale are great.

Only a couple of criticisms: Why does the lady in the ensemble take the lollipop from a guy's mouth and pop it into hers only to return it to him a few moments later? Ugh.

And the soulful group song about change and moving on drags just a bit, probably because it's such a change of pace and tone from the rest of the fun.

That said, here's a show not to miss.

e-mail: haddoc@desnews.com