I hate to admit it, but I really loved this musical. Actually the only reason not to love is because of all the pink merchandise, so I don’t really hate to admit it. It was just a lot of fun. From the energetic comedy to the powerhouse performances to the songs that make you want to dance in the aisles, this musical deserves it’s 8 Tony’s. Although, I hope that Harvey Fierstien did NOT get one of them. He’s on the original Broadway recording and he doesn’t sing…he just says all the lines with that gravelly, vomit inducing groan of his and I HATE IT! The national tour features a cross-dressing man who can actually sing! And it really completes the show. Probably my 2 favorite characters were the Female Authority Figure and Penny, Tracy’s best friend who is…a little on the dumb side.

Tracy: There’s going to be armed guards!

Penny: And they’ll probably have…ARMS!

Her stupid character was really fun to watch, especially as she falls in love with the main “colored” character, Seaweed. Oh yeah…the show is all about one girl’s attempt to integrate a 60’s TV show produced by an anti-integration, pushy mom whose daughter’s success is her sole goal in life. It really exemplifies the power of voice and the microcosm that musical comedies always exist in. Tracy, through her free spirit and love of dance she changes the minds of Baltimore and (theoretically, of course) the whole nation as she leads her “colored” friends in the big dance finale on national TV. And of course, nothing the government does affects anything, hence the microcosm. But that’s what makes all musical comedies so great…it’s the escapist fantasy…you don’t have to think about how corrupt and ineffective government really is…you’re just there to have fun.

And that’s what I did. The other character I mentioned earlier (Female Authority Figure) was very funny, because her character was very…for lack of a better word…lesbian.

Just think of me as a mother…who eats her young.

But she did it in a wonderfully funny way. The national tour person also looked a lot like Lily Tomlinson, which was even funnier.