“Hair,” has happened.
The weekend of performances was off to a brilliant start Thursday night with the first open dress rehearsal of “Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical,” in the Dance Theater Lab.
The story is told straight to the audience, about a group of hippies in 1968 who are doing what they want, whatever they want, with whoever they want, in the face of Lyndon B. Johnson’s Vietnam War. They sleep with anyone and everyone, do every drug they can find, and ferociously burn their draft cards.
Cast members begin the show by lounging in the audience, and continue to interact with the audience members throughout the show. They direct their conversations straight toward their viewers, and sing their protests both to and intothe crowd. By the end of the show, they invite audience members to dance and sing their closing number with them up on stage.
The cast is overflowing with talent, including Mateo Morel’s portrayal of Berger, one of a few main characters, who leads the pack of hippies on their stick-it-to-the-man adventures. His performance is convincingly spontaneous, and he abruptly informs the audience of the tone of the play by removing his pants in one of the very first scenes.
Andrew Jones plays Claude, the personality that has every hippie hanging on him, boys and girls alike. He is the only character that decides not to burn his draft card, and as a result, ends up overseas, fighting the fight the cast is trying so hard to avoid.
Arden Winant absolutely owns the stage when she bounds out as Sheila, the political activist of the group. Her character adds dynamic to the ‘60s culture of the play, and the cast seemed to flourish in taking their cues from her throughout the show.
The musical aspect of the show shines best through the songs the cast knew most. Songs like, “Age of Aquarius,” and “Let the Sun Shine,” were the most enjoyable for the audience, because they seemed to be the most enjoyable for the singers. There were numerous occasions when both soloists and ensemble could not be heard clearly, perhaps due to microphone malfunctions. But when they could be heard, the music was groovy.
Whether or not “Hair” is your thing, the show was worth seeing just to enjoy the talented cast. Shontay Richardson and Melissa Pellerano, who played Ronny and Dionne, had two of the most powerful voices in the show, leaving listeners waiting for more. The live on-stage band, led by musical director Mark Oleszko of Pace University, provided the stimulating mood music for the show.
Even if you did not get to see the show, you can pretty much imagine the simplicity of the scene. A lighted backdrop, a few risers to climb up and down when needed, and a garbage can here and there to burn the occasional government paper. But there wasn’t much left to the imagination during the scene where, silhouetted against a purple screen, cast members removed all their clothing and stood naked on stage for what was probably only 20 seconds, but felt much longer. The antagonizing scene preluded the much-needed intermission, allowing the audience to cope with and discuss what they just had or had not seen.
After their first open dress rehearsal on Thursday night, the flushed cast flocked to the Hub for a well deserved snack after their almost two and half-hour show. They were greeted with waves and “well-dones,” before they grabbed food and headed back to the Dance Theater Lab, already prepping for Friday night’s performance.