Hairspray - Jupitus and Carlisle join cast
Preview by Lizzie Guilfoyle
ON OCTOBER 26, 2009, Belinda Carlisle (as Velma Von Tussle), Phill Jupitus (Edna Turnblad) and Sharon D Clarke (Motormouth Mabel) will join the cast of Hairspray, which is currently booking at the Shaftesbury Theatre until October 24, 2010.
Based on John Waters’ cult 1988 film, Hairspray is the story of Tracy Turnblad, a big girl with big hair and an even bigger heart. But Tracy has a passion – to dance. And when she wins a spot on the local TV dance programme, ‘The Corny Collins Show’, she becomes an overnight success – no longer an outsider but an irrepressible teen celebrity.
It was in 1996, as a regular team captain on BBC2’s pop quiz Never Mind the Buzzcocks, that Jupitus became a household name. For 11 years, he appeared regularly on both the national and London comedy circuits and for five years (until March 2007), he was the Breakfast DJ on BBC6 Music. And just last year, he appeared on the West End stage – at Trafalgar Studios – in the one-man play Life Coach.
Carlisle, who will be making her West End debut in Hairspray, rose to fame in the 1980s as the lead singer of the all-girl band The GoGo’s. She went on to become a recording artist in her own right with hits such as Circle in the Sand, Heaven Is a Place on Earth and Leave A Light On. More recently, she has appeared in on television in Dancing with the Stars (US) and Hell’s Kitchen.
Although probably best known for her role as Lola Griffin in BBC TV’s Holby City, Sharon D Clarke‘s London theatre credits include Charity in Mother Goose (Hackney Empire), Mama Morton in Chicago (Adelphi Theatre), Killer Queen in We Will Rock You (Dominion Theatre) and Rafiki in The Lion King (Lyceum Theatre).
Also joining the cast of Hairspray will be Tony Timberlake (as Wilbur Turnblad), Nicola Brazil (Amber Von Tussle) and Gavin Alex (Corny Collins). Meanwhile, current cast members Chloe Hart (Tracy Turnblad), Verity Rushworth (Penny), Liam Tamne (Link Larkin), Adrian Hansel (Seaweed) and Raquel Jones (Little Inez) will remain with the show.
From November 8, 2009, Hairspray will alter its performance schedule, playing Tuesday to Saturday at 7.30pm, with matinees on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday at 3pm.