Hair the Musical 50th Anniversary Review

Sheffield Lyceum – until Saturday 6 July 2019

4****

As we come to the end of Pride month and celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots (widely considered to constitute the most important event leading to the gay liberation movementand the modern fight for LGBT rights), the 50th Anniversary revival of Hair the Musical arrives into Sheffield in a riot of colour and free love.

This “tribal love rock musical” is full of themes as important now as it was then – love and peace and freedom.

The first act introduces the tribe – Berger (Jake Quickenden), Woof (Bradley Judge), Sheila (Daisy Wood-Davis), Jeanie (Alison Arnopp), Crissy (Kelly Sweeney) and Claude (Paul Wilkins) who dreams of Manchester, England and who gets called up for the draft and the war against Vietnam.  The story follows the tribe as they try to convince a confused Claude not to join up. As he considers burning his draft card the tribe strip naked in a scene which is simplistic and beautiful, almost too subtle, staged at the very back of the stage with such soft lighting that you were almost unaware it was happening.

The second act is one long “trip”, after the tribe smoke the leaves of the “twiggy”, the plant they have cultivated.  The end of the second act – and I’m not giving away the ending – as a brutality about it which is a shocking black mark amongst the riot of colour.

Hair is full of well known songs Aquarius, Ain’t Got No, I Got Life, Good Morning Starshine, and Let The Sun Shine In and some less known ones – I particularly enjoyed Crissy’s rendition of Frank Mills and Cassie (Natalie Green) and Dione (Aiesha Pease) both have outstanding voices.

Maeve Blacks set, Ben Rogers lighting and William Wheltons choreography all add to the original Book and Lyrics by Gerome Ragni and James Rado and Galt Macdermot’s music with arrangements by Gareth Bretherton.  Katy Lipson and Aria Entertainment, Senbla and Hope Mill Theatre have created an iconic and worthy 50th anniversary celebration that deserves to be seen and enjoyed by all