Last Updated on 14th November 2023
The Hairspray UK Tour returns in 2024 with Brenda Edwards making her directorial debut.
Hairspray UK Tour
Today, producers Mark Goucher, Matthew Gale and Laurence Myers are delighted to announce that Brenda Edwards (Loose Women, ITV; We Will Rock You, London Coliseum) who has previously played “Motormouth” Maybelle in three tours of Hairspray will join the creative team alongside Paul Kerryson (Chicago, Sweeney Todd; Curve Theatre) to direct a new production of Hairspray which will embark on a major national UK and Ireland tour in 2024. Choreographed by Olivier Award winner Drew McOnie (In the Heights, King’s Cross Theatre; Jesus Christ Superstar, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre) the major national UK and Ireland tour will open in Manchester at the Palace Theatre on 16th July 2024 and tour through to July 2025.
Brenda Edwards said: “I couldn’t be more thrilled to be invited by the producers to make my directorial debut on the show as a co-director with Paul Kerryson. Hairspray, and this production in particular, has been such a huge part of my life. The show’s story and themes are as relevant as ever and I cannot wait to hold the open auditions to discover a new cast and work together to present a vibrant new production of this timeless musical for everyone to enjoy.”
Mark Shaiman (Composer/Co-Lyricist) said: “Brenda Edwards has been a part of the Hairspray family since she took on the role of “Motormouth” Maybelle in 2015 and hearing that she is co-directing the latest tour is music to my ears. The strength and soul that Brenda brings to both her performances and her life have already made me a fan and I hope a friend for life, and I can’t wait to see how she brings her personal perspective to our show. Brava Brenda!”
Completing the creative team is Set and Costume Design by Takis, Lighting Design by Philip Gladwell, Sound Design by Ben Harrison, Musical Supervising and Arrangement by Ben Atkinson, Musical Direction by Richard Atkinson, Projection Design by George Reeve, Casting by Grindrod Burton and Resident Direction by Juliet Gough.
After breaking box office records and delighting audiences in the West End, on Broadway and on the big screen since 1988, the timeless story of Hairspray centres around heroine Tracy Turnblad, who has big hair, a big heart, and big dreams to dance her way onto national TV, and into the heart of teen idol Link Larkin. When Tracy becomes a local star, she is able to use her newfound fame to fight for liberation, tolerance, and interracial unity in Baltimore. But can she win equality – and Link’s heart – without denting her ’do?
Hairspray is a musical based on the 1988 film of the same name which starred Divine and Ricki Lake by cult filmmaker John Waters. With music and lyrics by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman and book by Mark O’Donnell and Thomas Meehan, Hairspray originally opened to rave reviews on Broadway in 2002 and subsequently won eight Tony Awards. The production opened in London at the Shaftesbury Theatre in 2007 and won four Laurence Olivier Awards including Best New Musical. Proving to be an international success, Hairspray has also played in South Africa, Japan, South Korea, China and Dubai. Following the musical’s phenomenal success on stage, a film of the musical was released in 2007 which starred John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer and James Marsden.
Hairspray UK Tour Dates
Palace Theatre Manchester
16 July – 27 July 2024
BOOK TICKETS
Wales Millennium Centre Cardiff
29 July – 3 August 2024
BOOK TICKETS
The Marlowe Canterbury
6 – 10 August 2024
BOOK TICKETS
Liverpool Empire
19 – 24 August 2024
BOOK TICKETS
Grand Opera House Belfast
26 – 31 August 2024
BOOK TICKETS
Milton Keynes Theatre
2 – 7 September 2024
BOOK TICKETS
Southend Cliffs Pavilion
9 – 14 September 2024
BOOK TICKETS
Birmingham Hippodrome
16 – 21 September 2024
BOOK TICKETS
Edinburgh Playhouse
7 – 12 October 2024
BOOK TICKETS
Sheffield Theatres
14 – 19 October 2024
BOOK TICKETS
New Wimbledon Theatre
21 – 26 October 2024
BOOK TICKETS
Nottingham Theatre Royal
4 – 9 November 2024
BOOK TICKETS
Newcastle Theatre Royal
11 – 16 November 2024
BOOK TICKETS
New Theatre Hull
18 – 23 November 2024
BOOK TICKETS
Bradford Theatres
25 – 30 November 2024
BOOK TICKETS
Southampton Mayflower
6 – 11 January 2025
BOOK TICKETS
His Majesty’s Theatre Aberdeen
20 – 25 January 2025
BOOK TICKETS
King’s Theatre Glasgow
27 January – 1 February 2025
BOOK TICKETS
