Hairspray

1482 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: What impact did music have in the 1960s

The musical Hairspray started off as movie in 1988 written by John Waters and in 2003 was turned into Broadway show and then was re created into a movie again in 2007. Hairspray Is set in the 1960’s in Baltimore and is about a girl called Tracey Turnblad who doesn’t fit into the society social norm. Tracey is an overweight teenager trying to get her dream role to dance on the corny Collins show and the hope to meet her crush who is the popular and lead dancer Link. Tracey has to overcome being rejected to being on the show as she doesn’t have to right look for television. Tracy ends up detention at school and learns a whole new style of dancing from the black students who dance ‘once a month of negro day’ on the corny Collins show, and builds friendships and uses her new moves to win a spot on the show. She now has a constant battle of feeling like she doesn’t belong as lead dancer Amber and Amber’s mother make it hard for her and try to ruin her role on the show as there is a chance Tracey could take the crown off Amber for miss teen Baltimore. Tracey then causes trouble because she can’t understand why black and white people can’t dance altogether on television. She then leads a protest and stands up with the black people and fights for integration on television and daily life. As it looks like Amber is going to win the title Tracey comes in to claim victory and dances for all races and for every kind of person and the black and white all dance together starting a new chapter of beginning as equals. Hairspray takes place in Baltimore in 1962 which was in a time where history was being created such as the civil right movement. This musical leaves a significant impact by showing us the social issues that were happening in the ... ... middle of paper ... ... living in this present day, some knowledgeable facts and information on what it was like to live back in the 60’s. In one musical John Waters managed to re enact real history of American culture with issues such as the segregation and integration. He also showed the struggles of the older generations finding it hard to move on to the next chapter of the 60’s, and showed the change that happened in the 60’s helped by the younger generation. He also manage to base the whole musical around a passionate outspoken teenage girl who is reaching for dream to be on television but is constantly been rejected and looked down upon because she is a bigger girl and not in the higher class of society. But she actually does the right thing and stands up and helps create new change in Baltimore, all by following one message do what you believe in and do what you think is right.

Show More
Related

  • Live Performance Review of Blood Brothers

    2111 Words  | 5 Pages

    The producer Bill Kenwright picked up the rights to the musical in 1987, and a re-vamped Blood Brother returned to the West Endthe following year. The story is set in Liverpoolin the 1960s and it centres on Mrs Johnston and her family. It tells a demoralizing tale of two twin brothers separated at birth that grew up in two different social classes and how their lives become unavoidably linked endingin them finally becoming reunited in death. It tells the agonising story of a mother's utter anguish of losing her child and shows us the impoverished life she led and her financial desperation which resulted in her striking... ...

    Read More

  • Hairspray Gender Roles

    974 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hairspray, a John Waters’ musical, demonstrates progressive messages about the expansion of race-based civil rights in the 1960s . Although this is typically the lens through which Hairspray is viewed, this is not the only significant societal shift portrayed in the film. The stories of Edna Turnblad and Velma Von Tussle illustrate the progressive shift of women from “old” gender roles such as being excluded from the workplace to “new” gender roles where women begin taking managerial positions.

    Read More

  • Magic Trip: Ken Kesey’s Search for a Kool Place

    1041 Words  | 3 Pages

    My reception of this film was so positive because of my knowledge, experiences and values. I have always enjoyed learning about the 1960’s and admired the political activism and change that occurred in that time period. I grew up in a very liberal home, where we were freely able to discuss controversial topics and form our own opinions.

    Read More

  • Raisin In The Sun Comparison Essay

    565 Words  | 2 Pages

    The strikingly accurate portrayal of the life of an African American family in the 1950’s did a great job of keeping the interest up. The director’s mise-en-scene gave the film a believability that is rarely achieved. They did this through the well staged apartment that the film takes place in for the majority of the screen time. The cramped and cluttered home sets the stage for the actors in the film to truly live into their characters. The actors did a brilliant job of portraying the wide breadth of emotions in this film. Their engaging personalities kept the film alive and vibrant the

    Read More

  • History Of Shuffle Along

    1100 Words  | 3 Pages

    This project/presentation was intended to educate on a musical that, despite its importance to the American musical, may be easily glanced over because it doesn’t fit the criteria for what makes a musical in the twenty first century. Shuffle Along adds another layer of history to the New Negro Movement and the civil rights movement. Negro theatre is very much responsible for the creation of the modern musical and it’s important to know where things come from. This topic was interesting because I had previously taken a class in African American Music and now seeing Shuffle Along and understanding how that ties in to something that I love helps put the world into a different perspective for me.

    Read More

  • Agnes de Mille’s Impact in the World of Dance

    1399 Words  | 3 Pages

    Throughout the years, America has pursued the performing arts in a large variety of ways. Theatre plays a dramatic and major role in the arts of our society today, and it takes great effort in all aspects. Musical Theatre, specifically, involves a concentration and strength in dance, acting, and singing. This is the base that Musical Theatre is built upon. For my Senior Project, I helped choreograph multiple scenes in a community musical “Thoroughly Modern Millie”. Choreography is a way of expressing oneself, but it has not always been thought of for that purpose. Agnes de Mille’s expressive talent has drastically affected how people see choreography today. Agnes de Mille’s influence in the world of dance has left a lasting impact in the Performing Arts Department, and her revolutionary works are still known today for their wit, lyricism, emotion, and charm.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Robbins And Fosse

    1251 Words  | 3 Pages

    The people of the time period were still on their toes during the Cold War and were paranoid of a nuclear war outbreak. The movement was made to show there’s still hope despite the state our country is in. As tensions rise today, we must understand that live theatre tells a story of a new or old perspective on a given situation through the movement it conveys. The story can allow us to open up and look around and maybe fix the damage we are causing to our society on a day to day basis through our inability to accept people for who they. People are just people. Everyone should be seen as equal. Maybe we can change the world with movement forms. Robbin’s believed in social change in American through his choreography. As long as movement is seen as a universal form of expression, people will always be able to use movement as an outlet to express their views of the world and maybe change it. Anything is possible if one puts their mind to it. Although he stayed secretive about his religious and sexual views for the majority of his life, Robbins saw a world where he could come home to his family without the risk of being seen as an outcast to society. A place where traditions can evolve and love can conquer all, even in the adversity of the common people. The attempt to change society was made, but we need to figure out if that change stood the test of time to the American people. Hope will always exist in the stories

    Read More

  • Analysis of 7 O'Clock News/Silent Night by Simon and Garfunkel

    655 Words  | 2 Pages

    Throughout the song and the news go on you get cold and negative images of the events from around the world, he does not go into detail about each subject but by using negative language can out his point across through the language and tone. You could create a drama piece around the subjects brought up in the news, or to completely contrast the happy and peaceful things that happened in the 60’s. I have seen how to use 2 different songs together to represent different meanings and to show the battle between peace and war in the 60’s. I could use any topics talked about in the news, as they are all liked to the 1060’s.

    Read More

  • Sociological Analysis Of Kinsey

    543 Words  | 2 Pages

    The first thing about this film that caught my eye from a sociological perspective is that the society in the film is not depicted as a “perfect society” as most films do, instead it shows the real conflicts that society had back then with certain subjects. The film shows us the prejudices, and misconceptions that people had about things like sex, and homosexuality at the time.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Jonathan Larson's Play

    1786 Words  | 4 Pages

    The first thing I would consider is the setting of the play. Tony Kushner sets the play in New York City in 1985. This makes sense because the AIDS Epidemic occurred from 1981 to 1987. Therefore theatergoers that saw the first productions of Kushner’s play were familiar with the topic of AIDS. Nowadays, AIDS is not as prevalent, but it still exists in society. I believe that it is important to shed a light on the AIDS Epidemic, and the audience will still be able to understand. Another Broadway musical that is based upon the AIDS Epidemic is Jonathan Larson’s musical RENT. Larson’s musical ran on Broadway for twelve years, finishing it’s run in 2008. RENT continues to be a popular and relevant Broadway show and was even adapted for high school theater departments to perform. RENT is set in the East Village of New York City in the early 1990s. The play depicts the lives of several New Yorkers and their struggles with money and A...

    Read More

  • The 60s (movie)

    2037 Words  | 5 Pages

    This movie is a wonderful production starting from 1960 and ending in 1969 covering all the different things that occurred during this unbelievable decade. The movie takes place in many different areas starring two main families; a very suburban, white family who were excepting of blacks, and a very positive black family trying to push black rights in Mississippi. The movie portrayed many historical events while also including the families and how the two were intertwined. These families were very different, yet so much alike, they both portrayed what to me the whole ‘message’ of the movie was. Although everyone was so different they all faced such drastic decisions and issues that affected everyone in so many different ways. It wasn’t like one person’s pain was easier to handle than another is that’s like saying Vietnam was harder on those men than on the men that stood for black rights or vice versa, everyone faced these equally hard issues. So it seemed everyone was very emotionally involved. In fact our whole country was very involved in president elections and campaigns against the war, it seemed everyone really cared.

    Read More

  • Overview and Moral of Into the Woods: Play Analysis

    2609 Words  | 6 Pages

    thesis of how the musical brought our inner child out to realize our true struggles in life.

    Read More

  • Chicago: "All That Jazz"

    895 Words  | 2 Pages

    The stage performance of Chicago offered a spectacle that I expected before attending the show. I knew there was going to be scantly clad girls with dark makeup and saucy attitudes. The performers brought to life all that was raunchy in the entertainment business during the roaring twenties. The lifestyle in Chicago featured jazz, booze, sex and crime. More importantly, Chicago had beautiful, young women with the dream of having their own Vaudeville act. The two main female characters, Velma and Roxy were two such women hoping to capture the public's attention. The composition of the show is a metaphoric integration of Vaudeville type acts amongst the book scenes and diegetic musical numbers.

    Read More

  • Tennessee William's A Streetcar Named Desire

    1142 Words  | 3 Pages

    Tennessee Williams’s A Streetcar Named Desire is one of the most popular plays in American history. The play contains this theme of Old South versus New South where old southern ideals and way of life clash against newly formed ideals of the late 19th and early 20th century. The distinctions between the Old South’s emphasis on tradition, social class, and segregation versus the New South’s emphasis on hard work can be seen throughout the play.

    Read More

  • Analysis of West Side Story

    1149 Words  | 3 Pages

    I would say the target audience for this film would be people who enjoy musicals, no matter their age. The time lag would only have much of an effect for younger generations who do not remember the 1960's and the discrimination and the political actions that were being taken during that time period. The film is still a classic I would say because of all of the wonderful costumes, dancing, singing, acting, and clever story telling through songs. I can definitely see why this film was a popular success then as it still is today.

    Read More

More about Hairspray

Open Document