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Let the sunshine in: 'Hair' makes a comeback

By Matt Windman | Special to amNewYork

2:01 PM EDT, July 31, 2008

The cast of 'Hair' at Delacorte Theater in Central Park. (Ari Mintz/Newsday)

This is the most politically charged time in recent memory for young Americans, making it apropos that the 1960s counterculture celebration "Hair" is being performed as part of this summer's Shakespeare in the Park season.

Called the American Tribal Love Rock Musical, "Hair" is remembered for brilliantly mixing rock, drugs and sex with musical theater. It follows a collection of young hippies in the late '60s, tackling issues including war, counterculture, pacifism, racism, feminism, friendship and homosexuality. The renowned score includes "Aquarius," "Good Morning Sunshine," "Easy to Be Hard" and "Let the Sunshine In."

"What's so powerful about the show is that you see a group of young people who really care about the world they live in and care enough to voice their opinion," said director Diane Paulus. "We've been through a time in recent years where you haven't really felt that kind of possibility. But this year, what the Obama campaign represents is a feeling that things can change. To be in the presence of 'Hair' makes you feel alive again."

The Public Theater, which premiered the show in 1967 to much controversy, last year concluded its Shakespeare in the Park season with a free concert version in Central Park. The Public confirmed in February that it would remount "Hair" with the same cast as a free, full-scale production in Central Park. It officially opens next Thursday and runs through Aug. 31.

"It was a crazy whirlwind of an experience," said actor Jonathan Groff, who plays main character, Claude. "We had only eight days to rehearse. But in having that time limit, we learned how important it is to keep the show simple."

Though Shakespeare's words are used as lyrics throughout much of "Hair," and its main character is a kind of Hamlet figure, this marks the first Shakespeare in the Park show in many years that has no direct connection to Shakespeare or classical drama.

As you'd find in almost any revival of "Hair," the nude scene at the end of Act One will be performed uncensored.

"It's always been the choice of any 'Hair' cast member whether or not to get nude," Kacie Sheik, who plays Jeanie, told us. "My character is pregnant and wears a full body suit. But, luckily, they made a second half-body suit so that I wouldn't be removed from the nudity. It's amazing to be a part of this historical moment."

Ironically, Groff, who got partially naked in Broadway's "Spring Awakening," is the only one who keeps his clothes on.

"My character isn't free enough to do that," he said. "It'd be great to get naked in Central Park, but what can you do? It's the cross I have to bear."

Though rumors of a commercial transfer are buzzing, the actors insisted that Broadway is completely out of their minds -- at least for now.

"I'm just living one day at a time," Groff said. "We're in Central Park, the most amazing location for the show, enjoying the rain and the wind and the sun and the airplanes and the incredible audience that waits for hours to see the show."

The audience is invited to dance onstage with the entire cast during the finale. "They run onstage," Sheik said. "To my left is a gentleman who says he's a real hippie, and on my right is a 10-year-old girl with her mother. The girl hugs me and says this was her first musical."

Sheik recalled what it was like for a thunderstorm to interrupt the show's second preview performance. "The skies opened up, drenched us, and we continued with two or three songs," she said. "And the audience was cheering, stomping their feet. We'll all remember that moment."

The Delacorte Theater in Central Park. Go to publictheater.org for complete info. Tues-Sun 8pm. Through Aug 31