Hair (musical)

''Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical'' is a rock musical with a book and lyrics by Gerome Ragni and James Rado and music by Galt MacDermot. The work reflects the creators' observations of the hippie counterculture and sexual revolution of the late 1960s, and several of its songs became anthems of the anti-Vietnam War movement. The musical's profanity, its depiction of the use of illegal drugs, its treatment of sexuality, its irreverence for the American flag, and its nude scene caused controversy. The work broke new ground in musical theatre by defining the genre of "rock musical", using a racially integrated cast, and inviting the audience onstage for a " Be-In" finale.Pacheco, Patrick (June 17, 2001)
"Peace, Love and Freedom Party"
''Los Angeles Times'', p. 1. Retrieved on June 10, 2008

''Hair'' tells the story of the "tribe", a group of politically active, long-haired hippies of the " Age of Aquarius" living a bohemian life in New York City and fighting against conscription into the Vietnam War. Claude, his friend Berger, their roommate Sheila and their friends struggle to balance their young lives, loves and the sexual revolution with their rebellion against the war and their conservative parents and society. Ultimately, Claude must decide whether to resist the draft, as his friends have done, or serve in Vietnam, compromising his pacifist principles and risking his life.

After an off-Broadway debut on October 17, 1967, at Joseph Papp's Public Theater, and a run at the Cheetah nightclub from December 1967 through January 1968, the show opened on Broadway in April 1968 and ran for 1,750 performances. Simultaneous productions in cities across the United States and Europe followed shortly thereafter, including a London production that ran for 1,997 performances. Since then, productions have been staged around the world, spawning dozens of recordings, including the 3 million-selling original Broadway cast recording. Some of the songs became Top 10 hits, and a feature film adaptation was released in 1979. A Broadway revival opened in 2009, earning strong reviews and winning the Tony Award and Drama Desk Award for Best Revival of a Musical. In 2008, Richard Zoglin wrote in ''Time'' that "Today ''Hair'' seems, if anything, more daring than ever." Zoglin, Richard
"A New Dawn for ''Hair''"
''Time'', July 31, 2008 (in the August 11, 2008 issue, pp. 61–63)

History

Actors James Rado and Gerome Ragni began writing ''Hair'' together in late 1964. Rado, James (February 14, 2003)
"Hairstory – The Story Behind the Story"
''hairthemusical.com''. Retrieved on April 11, 2008."''Viet Rock''"
. ''Lortel Archives: The Internet Off-Broadway Database''. Retrieved on April 11, 2008. The main characters were autobiographical, with Rado's Claude a pensive romantic and Ragni's Berger an extrovert. Their close relationship, including its volatility, was reflected in the musical. Rado said, "We were great friends. It was a passionate kind of relationship that we directed into creativity, into writing, into creating this piece. We put the drama between us on stage."
. ''Newark Star-Ledger'' (July 19, 2008). Retrieved on July 26, 2008.

Rado described the inspiration for ''Hair'' as "a combination of some characters we met in the streets, people we knew and our own imaginations. We knew this group of kids in the East Village who were dropping out and dodging the draft, and there were also lots of articles in the press about how kids were being kicked out of school for growing their hair long". He recalled, "There was so much excitement in the streets and the parks and the hippie areas, and we thought if we could transmit this excitement to the stage it would be wonderful. ... We hung out with them and went to their Be-Ins ndlet our hair grow."Taylor, Kate (September 14, 2007)
"The Beat Goes On"
. ''The New York Sun''. Retrieved on May 27, 2008. Many cast members ( Shelley Plimpton in particular) were recruited off the street. Rado said, "It was very important historically, and if we hadn't written it, there'd not be any examples. You could read about it and see film clips, but you'd never ''experience'' it. We thought, 'This is happening in the streets', and we wanted to bring it to the stage."Haun, Harry. "Age of Aquarius", ''Playbill'', April 2009, from ''Hair'' at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre, p. 7 According to Rado's obituary in ''The New York Times'', the title was inspired by "a painting of a tuft of hair by the Pop artist Jim Dine. Its title was 'Hair'."

Rado and Ragni came from different artistic backgrounds. In college, Rado wrote musical revues and aspired to be a Broadway composer in the Rodgers and Hammerstein tradition. He went on to study acting with Lee Strasberg. Ragni was a member of The Open Theater, one of several groups that were developing experimental theatre techniques,Miller, pp. 54–56 including non-traditional theater roles, blurring the lines between playwright, director and actor. By 1967, theaters such as The Living Theatre, La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club and The Open Theatre were devising plays from improvisational scenes crafted in the rehearsal space rather than following a traditional script.Miller, pp. 56–58 Ragni introduced Rado to the modern theatre styles and methods being developed at The Open Theater. In 1966, while the two were developing ''Hair'', Ragni performed in The Open Theater's production of Megan Terry's play ''Viet Rock'', about young men being deployed to the Vietnam War. ''Viet Rock'' employed the improvisational exercises being used in experimental theatre. Scenes were connected in "prelogical ways": a scene could be built from a tangent from the previous scene, in counterpoint to it, or connected psychologically. Actors switched roles in the middle of a show, in mid-scene, or played actors. Terry wrote, "The ... transformations should be abrupt and total." ''Hair'' was designed in much the same way; the actors play different characters throughout the piece, and, as in Claude's psychedelic trip in Act 2, sometimes during the same scene. As in ''Viet Rock'', the actors frequently break the "fourth wall" to interact with the audience.

Rado and Ragni brought their drafts of the show to producer Eric Blau who, through common friend Nat Shapiro, connected the two with Canadian composer Galt MacDermot. MacDermot won two Grammy Awards for Best Instrumental Composition and Best Original Jazz Composition in 1961 for his "African Waltz" (recorded by Cannonball Adderley). The composer's lifestyle was in marked contrast to his co-creators: "I had short hair, a wife, and, at that point, four children, and I lived on Staten Island." "I never even heard of a hippie." But he shared their enthusiasm to do a rock and roll show. "We work independently", MacDermot said in May 1968. "I prefer it that way. They hand me the material. I set it to music." MacDermot wrote the first score in three weeks, starting with "I Got Life", "Ain't Got No", "Where Do I Go" and the title song. He first wrote "Aquarius" as an unconventional art piece, but later rewrote it as an uplifting anthem.

Off-Broadway productions

The creators pitched the show to Broadway producers and received many rejections. Eventually Joe Papp, who ran the New York Shakespeare Festival, decided he wanted ''Hair'' to open the new Public Theater (still under construction) in New York City's East Village. ''Hair'' was the first work by living authors that Papp produced. The director, Gerald Freedman, the theater's associate artistic director, decided that Rado, at 35, was too old to play Claude, although he agreed to cast the 32-year-old Ragni as Berger. The production did not go smoothly:

The rehearsal and casting process was confused, the material itself incomprehensible to many of the theater's staff. reedmanwithdrew in frustration during the final week of rehearsals and offered his resignation. Papp accepted it, and the choreographer Anna Sokolow took over the show. ... After a disastrous final dress rehearsal, Papp wired Mr. Freedman in Washington, where he'd fled: "Please come back." Mr. Freedman did.Isherwood, Charles (September 16, 2007)
"The Aging of Aquarius"
. ''The New York Times''. Retrieved on May 25, 2008.

''Hair'' premiered off-Broadway at the Public on October 17, 1967, and ran for six weeks. The lead roles were played by Walker Daniels as Claude, Ragni as Berger, Jill O'Hara as Sheila, Steve Dean as Woof, Arnold Wilkerson as Hud, Sally Eaton as Jeanie and Shelley Plimpton as Crissy. Set design was by Ming Cho Lee, costume design by Theoni Aldredge, and, although Anna Sokolow began rehearsals as choreographer, Freedman received choreographer credit. The production had a "tepid critical reception" but was popular with audiences. A cast album was released in 1967.

Chicago businessman Michael Butler was planning to run for the U.S. Senate on an antiwar platform. After seeing an ad for ''Hair'' in ''The New York Times'' that led him to believe the show was about Native Americans, he watched the Public's production several times and joined forces with Papp to reproduce the show at another New York venue after it closed at the Public. Papp and Butler first moved the show to The Cheetah discothèque in midtown, where it opened on December 22, 1967, and ran for 45 performances. There was no nudity in either the Public Theater or Cheetah production.Horn, pp. 87–88

Revision for Broadway

''Hair'' underwent a thorough overhaul between its closing at the Cheetah in January 1968 and its Broadway opening three months later. The off-Broadway book, already light on plot, was loosened even further and made more realistic.Planer, Lindsay
"''Hair'' [Original 1967 Off-Broadway Cast
/nowiki>"">riginal 1967 Off-Broadway Cast">"''Hair'' [Original 1967 Off-Broadway Cast
/nowiki>" AllMusic.com, accessed February 3, 2011 were added,Horn, pp. 39–40 including "Let the Sun Shine In", to make the ending more uplifting.

Before the move to Broadway, the creative team hired director Tom O'Horgan, who had built a reputation directing experimental theater at La MaMa E.T.C. He had been the authors' first choice to direct the Public Theater production, but he was in Europe at the time. ''Newsweek'' called O'Horgan's directing style "sensual, savage, and thoroughly musical ... edisintegrates verbal structure and often breaks up and distributes narrative and even character among different actors. ... He enjoys sensory bombardment." O'Horgan and the writers rearranged scenes to increase the experimental aspects. In rehearsals, O'Horgan used techniques passed down by Viola Spolin and Paul Sills involving role playing and improvisational "games", many of which were incorporated into the Broadway script.Horn, p. 53 O'Horgan and new choreographer Julie Arenal encouraged freedom and spontaneity in their actors, introducing "an organic, expansive style of staging" that had never been seen before on Broadway. The inspiration to include nudity came when the authors saw an antiwar demonstration in Central Park in which two men stripped naked as an expression of defiance and freedom. O'Horgan had used nudity in many of the plays he directed, and he helped integrate the idea into the fabric of the show.

Papp declined to pursue a Broadway production, so Butler produced the show himself. For a time it seemed that he would be unable to secure a Broadway theater, as the Shuberts, Nederlanders and other theater owners deemed the material too controversial. But Butler had family connections and knew important people; he persuaded Biltmore Theatre owner David Cogan to make his venue available. The stage design was completely open, with no curtain and the fly area and grid exposed to the audience. The proscenium arch was outlined with climb-ready scaffolding. The spare set was painted in shades of grey, with street graffiti stenciled on the stage. The stage was raked, and a tower of abstract scaffolding upstage at the rear merged a Native American totem pole and a modern sculpture of a crucifix-shaped tree. This scaffolding was decorated with found objects that the cast gathered from New York's streets, including a life-size papier-mâché bus driver, a head of Jesus and a neon marquee of the Waverly movie theater in Greenwich Village.Horn, pp. 61–64 The costumes were based on hippie street clothes, made more theatrical with enhanced color and texture. Some of these included mixed parts of military uniforms, bell-bottom jeans with Ukrainian embroidery, tie dyed T-shirts and a red, white and blue fringed coat.

Synopsis

Act I

Claude sits center stage as the "tribe" mingles with the audience. Tribe members Sheila, a New York University student and political activist, and Berger, an irreverent free spirit, cut a lock of Claude's hair and burn it. After the tribe converges in slow motion toward the stage, they begin their celebration as children of the Age of Aquarius ("Aquarius"). Berger removes his trousers to reveal a loincloth. Interacting with the audience, he introduces himself as a "psychedelic teddy bear ... looking for my Donna" ("Donna").

The tribe recites a list of pharmaceuticals, legal and illegal ("Hashish"). Woof, a gentle soul, extols sexual practices ("Sodomy"). He loves plants, his family and the audience, telling the audience, "We are all one." Hud, a militant African-American, is carried in upside-down on a pole. He declares himself "president of the United States of Love" ("Colored Spade"). In a fake English accent, Claude says that he is "the most beautiful beast in the forest" from "Manchester, England". A tribe member reminds him that he's from Flushing, New York ("Manchester England"). Hud, Woof and Berger declare their color ("I'm Black"), while Claude counters that he is "invisible". The tribe rattles off a list of things they lack ("Ain't Got No"). African-American tribe members list street signs in symbolic sequence ("Dead End"). Sheila is carried onstage ("I Believe in Love") and leads the tribe in a protest chant. Jeanie, an eccentric young woman, appears wearing a gas mask because of pollution ("Air"). She is pregnant and in love with Claude, wishing it was Claude's baby, as she was "knocked up by some crazy speed freak". The tribe link LBJ, FBI, CIA and LSD ("Initials"). Members of the tribe appear dressed as Claude's parents, berating him for transgressions: he has no job and collects "mountains of paper" clippings and notes. They say they will not give him any more money, and "the army'll make a man out of you", presenting him with his draft notice. In defiance, Claude leads the tribe in celebrating their vitality ("I Got Life").

Berger hands out imaginary pills to the tribe members, saying they are for high-profile people such as Richard Nixon, the Pope and " Alabama Wallace". He relates how he was expelled from high school. Three tribe members dress up as principals in Hitler mustaches and swastika armbands, mocking the American education system. Berger and the tribe defy them, singing "Going Down". Claude returns from passing his draft board physical. He pretends to burn his Vietnam War draft card, which Berger reveals is a library card. Claude agonizes about what to do about being drafted. Two tribe members dressed as tourists arrive to ask the tribe why they have long hair. Claude and Berger lead the tribe in explaining the significance ("Hair"). The woman says kids should "be free, no guilt" and "do whatever you want, just so long as you don't hurt anyone." She observes that long hair is natural ("My Conviction"). She opens her coat to reveal that she's a man in drag. As the couple leaves, the tribe calls her Margaret Mead.

Sheila gives Berger a yellow shirt. He goofs around and tears it in two. Sheila laments that Berger cares more about the "bleeding crowd" than about her (" Easy to Be Hard"). Jeanie summarizes everyone's romantic entanglements: "I'm hung up on Claude, Sheila's hung up on Berger, Berger is hung up everywhere. Claude is hung up on a cross over Sheila and Berger." Berger, Woof and another tribe member pay satiric tribute to the American flag as they fold it ("Don't Put it Down"). The tribe joins the audience, inviting them to a Be-In. After young and innocent Crissy describes "Frank Mills", a boy she's looking for, the tribe participates in the "Be-In". The men burn their draft cards. Claude puts his card in the fire, changes his mind and pulls it out. He asks, "where is the something, where is the someone, that tells me why I live and die?" ("Where Do I Go"). The tribe appears naked, intoning "beads, flowers, freedom, happiness."

Act II

Some tribe members have the "Electric Blues". The tribe enters worshiping in an attempt to summon Claude ("Oh Great God of Power"). Claude returns from the induction center, and tribe members act out an imagined conversation from his draft interview, with Hud saying "the draft is white people sending black people to make war on the yellow people to defend the land they stole from the red people". Claude gives Woof a Mick Jagger poster; Woof is excited about the gift, as he is infatuated with Jagger. Three white women of the tribe tell why they like "Black Boys" ("black boys are delicious"), and three black women of the tribe, dressed like The Supremes, explain why they like "White Boys" ("white boys are so pretty").

Berger gives Claude a joint laced with a hallucinogen. Claude starts to trip as the tribe acts out his visions ("Walking in Space"). He hallucinates that he is skydiving from a plane into the jungles of Vietnam. Berger appears as General George Washington and is told to retreat because of an Indian attack. The Indians shoot all of Washington's men. General Ulysses S. Grant appears and begins a roll call: Abraham Lincoln (played by a black female tribe member), John Wilkes Booth, Calvin Coolidge, Clark Gable, Scarlett O'Hara, Aretha Franklin, Colonel George Custer. They all dance a minuet until African witch doctors kill them, except for Lincoln, who says, "I'm one of you". After the Africans sing his praises, Lincoln recites an alternate version of the Gettysburg Address ("Abie Baby"). Booth shoots Lincoln, but Lincoln tells him, "Shit! I'm not dyin' for no white man". As the visions continue, Buddhist monks enter. One pours a can of gasoline over another monk, who is set afire (reminiscent of the self-immolation of Thích Quảng Đức) and runs off screaming. Three Catholic nuns strangle the three remaining Buddhist monks. Three astronauts shoot the nuns with ray guns. Three Chinese people stab the astronauts. Three Native Americans kill the Chinese with bows and tomahawks. Three Green Berets kill the Native Americans with machine guns and then kill each other. A sergeant appears with two parents holding a suit on a hanger, talking to the suit as if it were their son of whom they are very proud. The bodies rise and play like children. The playing escalates to violence until they are all dead again. They rise again and comment about the casualties in Vietnam: "It's a dirty little war" (" Three-Five-Zero-Zero"). At the end of the sequence, two tribe members sing, over the dead bodies, Shakespeare's paean to the nobility of Man ("What A Piece of Work Is Man").

After the trip, Claude says "I can't take this moment to moment living on the streets. ... I want to be ... invisible". As they "look at the Moon", Sheila and the others enjoy a light moment (" Good Morning Starshine"). The tribe pays tribute to an old mattress ("The Bed"). Claude leaves as the tribe enters wrapped in blankets during a snowstorm. They begin a protest chant and then call for Claude. Claude enters dressed in a military uniform, his hair short, but the tribe does not see him because he is an invisible spirit. Claude says, "like it or not, they got me." The tribe sings "Flesh Failures". They move in front of Claude and launch into "Let the Sun Shine In"; as they exit, Claude is left lying in the center. During the curtain call, the tribe reprises "Let the Sun Shine In" and brings audience members on stage to dance.

(Note: ''This plot summary is based on the original Broadway script. The script has varied in subsequent productions.'')

Principal casts

Early productions

Broadway

''Hair'' opened on Broadway at the Biltmore Theatre on April 29, 1968. The production was directed by O'Horgan and choreographed by Arenal, with designs by Robin Wagner (set), Nancy Potts (costumes), and Jules Fisher (lighting). The original Broadway cast included Rado and Ragni as Claude and Berger, Lynn Kellogg as Sheila, Lamont Washington as Hud, Eaton, Plimpton and Dyson reprising their off-Broadway roles as Jeanie, Crissy and the "Aquarius" soloist, Melba Moore as Dionne, Steve Curry as Woof, and Paul Jabara and Diane Keaton in the ensemble (both Moore and Keaton later played Sheila).original Broadway production of ''Hair''
at the Internet Broadway Database, accessed June 30, 2017 Other replacements during the original Broadway run were Ben Vereen, Keith Carradine, Barry McGuire, Ted Lange, Meat Loaf, La La Brooks, Mary Seymour (of Musique), Joe Butler, Peppy Castro (of the Blues Magoos), Robin McNamara, Eddie Rambeau, Vicki Sue Robinson, Beverly Bremers, Bert Sommer, Dale Soules and Kim Milford. It was the first Broadway show to have a regular ticket price of $50, with 12 of the seats at this price for sale to large corporations from July 1968. The top price when it opened was $11.

The ''Hair'' team soon became embroiled in a lawsuit with the organizers of the Tony Awards. After assuring producer Michael Butler that commencing previews by April 3, 1968, would assure eligibility for the 1968 Tonys, the New York Theatre League ruled ''Hair'' ineligible, moving the cutoff date to March 19. The producers sued but were unable to force the League to reconsider. At the 1969 Tonys, ''Hair'' was nominated for Best Musical and Best Director but lost to ''1776'' in both categories. The production ran for four years and 1,750 performances, closing on July 1, 1972.

Early regional productions

The West Coast version played at the Aquarius Theater in Los Angeles beginning about six months after the Broadway opening and running for an unprecedented two years. The Los Angeles tribe included Rado, Ragni, Vereen (who played Hud and then replaced Ragni), Ted Neeley (who replaced Rado), Willie Weatherly (who played Berger and Claude), Meat Loaf, Gloria Jones, Táta Vega, Jobriath, Jennifer Warnes and Dobie Gray.

There were soon nine simultaneous productions in U.S. cities, followed by national tours.King, Betty Nygaard
"''Hair''"
. ''Encyclopedia of Music in Canada''. Historica Foundation of Canada. Retrieved on May 31, 2008. Performers in these included Joe Mantegna, André DeShields, Charlotte Crossley and Alaina Reed (Chicago), David Lasley, David Patrick Kelly, Meat Loaf, and Shaun Murphy (Detroit), Kenny Ortega and Arnold McCuller (tour), Bob Bingham (Seattle) and Philip Michael Thomas (San Francisco). The creative team from Broadway worked on ''Hair'' in Los Angeles, Chicago and San Francisco, as the Broadway staging served as a rough template for these and other early regional productions. In Los Angeles, Tom Smothers was co-producer. Regional casts consisted mostly of local actors, although a few Broadway cast members reprised their roles.Horn, pp. 100–01 O'Horgan or the authors sometimes took new ideas and improvisations from a regional show and brought them back to New York, such as when live chickens were tossed onto the stage in Los Angeles.

It was rare for so many productions to run simultaneously during an initial Broadway run. Butler, who had called ''Hair'' "the strongest anti-war statement ever written", said the reason he opened so many productions was to influence public opinion against the war and end it as soon as possible.

West End

''Hair'' opened at the Shaftesbury Theatre in London on September 27, 1968, led by the same creative team as the Broadway production. The opening night was delayed until the abolition of theatre censorship in England under the Theatres Act 1968

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