‘Hairspray’ will stick on Strip

Friday, Feb. 17, 2006 | 8:56 a.m.

"Hairspray" will leave you breathless.

This energetic Broadway transplant is almost non-stop song-and-dance from the opening number, "Good Morning Baltimore," to the closing, "You Can't Stop the Beat."

In between there is enough comedy and romance to satisfy any fan of light-hearted theater.

Hopefully this production (directed by Jack O'Brien and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell) will find its audience quickly and not suffer the same fate as "Avenue Q," which will leave Wynn Las Vegas in May - a premature end to a musical that failed to live up to its potential.

Based upon the 1988 John Waters film of the same name, the basic story of "Hairspray" centers around a teenaged girl - Tracy Turnblad - who lands a spot on a local TV dance program in 1962 Baltimore and sets out to integrate the show.

The film's cast included female impersonator Divine, who died the same year the movie was released.

Divine played the role of Edna Turnblad, Tracy's mother.

Comedian Jerry Stiller (father of actor Ben Stiller) was the husband and father.

Former TV talk-show host Ricki Lake, who attended Wednesday night's performance, was Tracy.

R&B legend Ruth Brown, who now lives in Las Vegas, had the role of Motormouth Maybelle in the movie.

The 77-year-old member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame often performs Thursdays at the Bootleggers Bistro.

The Las Vegas "Hairspray" cast includes Harvey Fierstein as Edna and Dick Latessa as Wilbur.

Fierstein and Latessa originated their respective rolls in the Broadway production, which premiered in 2002 and won eight Tony Awards in 2003, including Best Musical.

Each has agreed to perform in the Vegas version (no intermission; 90 minutes in length) for at least three months.

There is a large question mark about whether the local production can survive without the two Broadway celebrities.

It should do very well. It is such a fun show, filled with so much enthusiasm that it spills over into the audience.

While Fierstein and Latessa have garnered the most publicity surrounding the arrival of "Hairspray," and rightfully so, the entire cast is superb.

Katrina Rose Dideriksen, a relative newcomer to show business, is ideally cast as Tracy, the teen with a social conscience and a weight problem who finds love en route to integrating the popular "The Corny Collins" show.

Collins is portrayed by Kevin Spirtas, noted for his six years as Dr. Craig Wesley on NBC's "Days of Our Lives."

Las Vegas entertainer Susan Anton is a delightfully villainous mother, Velma Von Tussle, who will stop at nothing to help her daughter (Amber, played by Katharine Leonard) win a popularity contest.

As would be expected of anything associated with John Waters (responsible for such low-budget film oddities as 1969's "Mondo Trasho" and 1968's "Eat Your Makeup") all of the characters in "Hairspray" are quirky, mostly misfits who exist outside of mainstream society.

While there may be an underlying message about racism and other issues, the real message in this production is entertainment.

Local producers Michael Gill and Myron Martin know their stuff. They have put together a show at the Luxor that should be as big a success as its neighbor "Mamma Mia," at Mandalay Bay.

Jerry Fink can be reached at 259-4058 or at jerry@lasvegassun.com.