Hairspray Live Made America Great Again (Review)

Last night brought us NBC’s yearly holiday musical special, Hairspray Live! Today, we review the highs, lows, tears, twists, and shouts.

Full disclosure, I have had Hairspray Live! in my iPhone’s calendar since the summer, my viewing party plans were in place weeks prior, and I cried merely thinking about it on at least 5 different occasions this past week leading up to its grand premiere. So maybe I had a bit of a bias going in. But still, I’m an avid pop culture consumer, and as such, I tried my best to use discretion while watching, and vowed to remain open to the possibility that this would flop.

Guess what though? It didn’t flop. Like an amateur Muggle in a Quidditch match, it was a magical experience with a just few hitches along the way, but nonetheless, you’re just so damn happy to get to be part of the game.

Let’s start with the cast. Newcomer Maddie Baillio was discovered in an open casting call in New York just months ago and, last night, made her debut as our heroine, Tracy Turnblad. She was mostly great. She did her best to keep up with the powerhouses around her, namely Harvey Fierstein in his return performance as her mother Edna, and Martin Short as her father Wilbur, and succeeded on the whole. There were moments it was apparent she was kinda an amateur. Even as early as the opening number, a few lines were flubbed and a couple of cues were missed. But it’s live TV, she’s 20 years old, and the unavoidable fun of her bubbly and passionate Tracy largely (no pun intended, Hairspray nerds!) made us forget about any and all possible imperfections.

Courtesy of NBC.

And speaking of imperfection, there was truly not a singular one to be found in the performances of the supporting cast. You KNOW I’m mostly talking about Jennifer Hudson and Kristin Chenoweth, both of whom we are all unworthy of sharing a planet with. Hudson (as Motormouth Maybelle, always a show-stopping role) gave one of the most powerful and resonant performances in recent memory. Her “I Know Where I’ve Been,” the second act belt-y masterpiece about her fight in the civil rights movement and all the work she knows has yet to be done, brought everyone to tears. Literally everyone. The cast on the stage with her on national television couldn’t even keep it together. Tiny Little Inez had to wipe tears from big hunky dancer Link Larkin’s very pretty face.

Kristin Chenoweth’s turn as a probably the favorite character of our president-elect’s new cabinet, the super racist (though darkly funny) Velma Von Tussle, was masterful. Her Broadway background, of course, was largely to blame for her brilliance, but every last note she hit, twirl she executed, and insult seemingly pulled directly from Ann Coulter’s Twitter she hurled was truly flawless.

Courtesy of NBC.

The Nicest Kids in Town et al were endlessly pleasant. Derek Hough’s Corny Collins was delightfully cheesy, Dove Cameron’s Amber Von Tussle was vocally wonderful and just the right amount of teenaged sinister. But, as is generally the case in productions of this show, Seaweed (Ephraim Sykes) and his sister Little Inez stole the show amongst the crowd of younger characters. Their acting, singing (some of the best songs of the show), dancing (see previous sentiment), and the all-around fearless and inspiring nature of their characters instantly drew us to them so that we couldn’t pull ourselves away even if we’d wanted to.

Pop princess Ariana Grande’s turn as Penny Pingleton was better than expected, though not as impressive as we might’ve wanted. Her Broadway experience was evident, but so was her now-pervasive schtick of being a bored, sexy baby. The performance was technically on point, but a bit passionless, if not uninteresting. And perhaps the weakest, uhhhhh, link in the show was Link himself. Played by Garrett Clayton with a very basic, almost cartoonish interpretation of “swag,” Link’s innately boring and unpleasant character became more apparent than ever. Clayton’s voice and dance moves were just fine, but the lack of enthusiasm with which he played Link only served to turn us off to the would-be pined after crooner.

Courtesy of NBC.

Perhaps the most exciting parts of the show were those in which the many celeb bit roles appeared. Andrea Martin as Mrs. Pingleton, definitely more than a cameo but less than a principle role, was magic. She’s hysterical, she’s a theatre queen, and we must protect her at all costs. Similarly, Rosie O’Donnell’s tiny part as the high school gym teacher was right up her alley, and was super exciting for those of us whose favorite part of this election cycle was that it made us all listen to Rosie again.

Sean Hayes had a small role as Mr. Pinky, the plus-sized clothing mogul who recruits Tracy as a spokesmodel, and was his delightfully wacky self for the all of 4 minutes we had with him. We got tiny cameos by previous Tracys, Marissa Jaret Winokur and Ricki Lake, in “Welcome to the 60’s”, which was predictable but very welcome and super fun.

Courtesy of NBC.

In a more general sense, the show was incredibly impressive. The production value was astounding, the sets were great, the transitions were nearly seamless, give or take a few lags and early starts that were almost unnoticeable. The direction (by Kenny Leon) was what really made the production what it was, which, as proven by less-than-ideal live musicals past, is a hard feat to pull off. Not only did the period aesthetics need to be perfected, but some of the shots they managed to pull off on live television seemed nearly impossible, which made the show all the more magical.

And, aside from specific actors’ performances, the direction of the actors was notably skillful. The thing that usually causes taped live performance to fail is that actors have a hard time navigating and transcending the medium. These shows are written to be played for a live audience, which they technically are, but the actors are also acting for a camera. A combination of seasoned pros, deft camera work, and remarkable direction are what allowed these actors to largely shine in this middle ground last night, rather than get lost between the two.

Courtesy of NBC.

All in all, it wasn’t a completely perfect night, but it was entertaining. It made us (or, at least, me) smile for two hours straight, which is something that seemed completely impossible in this politically charged garbage year. In our hate-watch-heavy culture, it’s so easy to pull out the bits that don’t work and the criticize the moments that fall flat, but it feels better to just enjoy it. Which is what this production was all about. We needed to be reminded that it’s not only okay, but valuable and sometimes necessary to revel in the happiness amidst the struggle.

It allowed us to escape into a world not so different from our current situation, and to see that passionate, progressive, united weirdos can prevail, and that love is still possible. And we got to see Andrea Martin roll around on a bed and Martin Short and Harvey Fierstein perform the most lovely and romantic duet of the evening and Jennifer Hudson bring it all down and Kristin Chenoweth belt about crabs.

Next: 15 Movies We Would Like to See on Broadway

I’m aware that the show had its flaws, but I’m also aware of the unadulterated joy and undeniable sense of community that musicals still have the power to provide, despite any and all adversity we’re facing. So run and tell THAT.