Review: HAIR

Last night, St Andrews’ Byre Theatre was taken over by the Just So cast performing, with great enthusiasm, the American tribal love-rock musical HAIR. HAIR, a daring and vibrant piece of theatre, is not only a musical of comedy but one that touches upon some of the troubling issues of war, politics and religion.

 From the moment the audience entered the theatre they were consumed by the psychedelic atmosphere of 1960s America. The cast floated around the auditorium in character preparing us for an evening of hippy antics. Once the show began the audience was transported back to the age of “Aquarius” with superbly strong female vocals that immediately captivated the audience. The musical numbers were not simple, but the cast took on the challenge expertly and sustained their energy throughout. Each cast member fully embraced their character, never once losing momentum.

Each actor brought individuality to their performance. Special mentions go to DJ Ball as Burger who should be congratulated on his outstanding comedic timing and liveliness.  Ayanna Coleman was exceptional in her performance of “I Believe in Love” and “Good Morning Starshine”, rendering clear emotional feeling and grace. Her stage presence, empathy and vocals were also extremely strong. Tommy Rowe as Claude was also well-cast. He enthusiastically sang the famous “Got My Life”, bringing a fresh kind of emotional intensity to the role. Despite a hiccup in the sound system nearing the end Tommy managed to carry on with true professionalism.

Choreographer Faye Hatonm impressively managed the large cast by using simplistic dance moves and effective patterns. The cast could fill the stage in moments of chaos yet were able to merge together at key moments to imply solidarity.  At times the moves were slightly out of time and uncoordinated but perhaps this only worked to reinforce the play’s tendency towards free love and free living?

The minimalistic set enabled the cast to move around and the ladder and stage blocks created conveniently varied platforms. Incorporating the band on set was effective and the camper van added balance.  In addition the gauze that came down at the end of the first half was used to reveal the famous nude scene which was tastefully portrayed with subtle low lighting. Lastly, the costumes looked authentic and, along with the wigs, they added much to each individual character.

Finally the last song “Let the Sun Shine” was powerful and poignantly felt amongst the audience leaving us with the final, clichéd but ever-important, message of ‘Make Love, Not War’.

HAIR continues today at 2pm and 8pm at the Byre, and you can catch it for just £7!