HAIR: CHANGING VERSIONS.
Item
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Title
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HAIR: CHANGING VERSIONS.
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Identifier
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AAI8302517
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identifier
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8302517
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Creator
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HORN, BARBARA LEE.
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Contributor
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Stanley A. Waren
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Date
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1982
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Theater
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Abstract
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The evolution of the rock musical Hair is examined from its initial presentation at the Public Theater in 1967, through its stagings on Broadway and elsewhere, and to its 1978 film adaptation. The study is of value to three categories of readers. Students of American social history in the late 1960s will find an investigation of the ways in which the show's dramatic form, thematic content, and theatrical techniques reflected the beliefs and practices of the "hippie" counterculture. For those interested in the development of American musical comedy, Hair is discussed in relation to significant antecedents as well as to musicals which followed it. The third group of readers for whom this study is intended consists of those with a specific interest in the staging of Hair. The show was completely rewritten between the Public Theater presentation and its production on Broadway. Aside from the addition of more than a dozen songs, the revision transformed the piece from an antiwar protest musical into a theatrical orgy featuring "non-plot," nudity, and an explicit assault on the conventions of Broadway musical comedy. As a nonbook musical Hair varied from performance to performance, responding to pertinent topics of the day and adapting to mores both in the United States and abroad. Consequently, while not all of the changes which Hair underwent are encompassed in the study, there is a recounting of the significant types of alterations which occurred. Interviews with several of the musical's principals should be of particular interest to this third group of readers. Opinions of critics and theatre historians about Hair are analyzed and reasons suggested for the success and failure of different productions. Ultimately, Hair is revealed as an authentic and accurate extension of the hippie movement, theatrically innovative if not unique, its popularity derived mainly from social relevance, adaptability, and substantive appeal.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
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Program
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Theatre
