HAIR... who does the wigs?

[RagzJr]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 1:19pm

I know, sounds like a ridiculous question. I'm doing a production of Hair this summer and the director and producers want to find a "damned good wig" for their Claude. Does anyone know who provides the wigs for the current revival?

[Dollypop]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 1:20pm

Corine

[Smaxie]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 1:22pm

http://ibdb.com/person.php?id=483488

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 1:53pm

Excellent quality, human hair lace front wigs can be easily found online. Lace front wigs are what are used on Broadway and all professional productions (film, TV, etc.).

You can get a great one for around $400 or a little less. I'm sure the ones used in the Broadway revival of HAIR are much pricier since they are specifically created for the production.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 5:55pm

There are acually very few wigs used. Most of the actors have natural hair being used.

[claudioislove]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 6:19pm

Yeah, most of them aren't wearing wigs. But i saw this video once where Gavin Creel was discussing how his wig was made specifically for his head and how he got covered in saran wrap and tape to make a mold of his head and his hairline. pretty cool (and i'm sure expensive) stuff.

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 6:23pm

I find it hilarious that Creel refused to cut his hair for years (mainly for the La Cage revival) and is now being wigged in a show where his long hair would have been an asset.

[SNAFU]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 6:27pm

It is probably Bob Kelly in NYC that makes the wigs. I know they make the ones for Saturday Night Live. The wigs he makes are all hand tied and run anywhere from $2,000 up.

[staticradar]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 6:34pm

Actually Creel HAS to have short hair for HAIR for the finale...so Claude really does need a wig more than any other actor in the cast as he goes from long hair to short hair every night and that would be impossible for Creel to do lol.

[B3TA07]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 6:54pm

"that would be impossible for Creel to do lol." Nothing's impossible in the wake of Equality!!

[blaxx]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 7:03pm

Actually Creel HAS to have short hair for HAIR for the finale...

Mmm, short hair can be a wig too.

[claudioislove]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 7:21pm

"Mmm, short hair can be a wig too. "

Not really, because they'd have to wrap up his hair really fast and put on a short wig for him during a very fast and intense quick change. it's much easier to pull off the wig and comb his hair.

[AndAllThatJazz22]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 7:24pm

Gavin was so hot with long Hair.

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[claudioislove]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 7:26pm

YES HE WAS. haha. i absolutely love that picture of him with the long hair. His wig doesn't look as nice as his real hair.

[AndAllThatJazz22]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 7:33pm

I'm too in love with my avatar to replace it. *Sighs*
Don't get me wrong, Gavin is hot with short Hair OR long Hair, but he was even HOTTER with long hair.

[blueq123]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 10:52pm

Not true, claudioislove. Jay Armstrong Johnson and Paris Remillard, the understudies for Claude, both have long hair, so when they go on for Claude, they wear short-hair wigs.

Also, when Gavin talked about having his wig made especially for him, that is true with almost all wigs on Broadway; the actors must go in for a fitting and the wigs are made just for them so that even the hairline of the wig matches their natural hairline. Updated On: 7/12/09 at 10:52 PM

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 11:57pm

the actors must go in for a fitting and the wigs are made just for them so that even the hairline of the wig matches their natural hairline.

That why lace front wigs are used. Lace front wigs simulate the person's hairline, so even if the wig is slicked back, it still looks like the hairline is their own hairline.

FYI: Beyonce' wears lace front wigs ALWAYS. That long hair you see her with (even when pulled back) is a lace front wig.

[millie_dillmount]

Posted: 7/13/09 at 12:01am

'Jay Armstrong Johnson and Paris Remillard, the understudies for Claude, both have long hair, so when they go on for Claude, they wear short-hair wigs.'

Yeah, but since Gavin has to do this most of the time, it probably is just easier for him to pull off a wig every night rather than keep putting on a short wig at the end of the show.

[Dangerous Divine]

Posted: 7/13/09 at 12:07am

Jay Johnson actually has a long and short wig for when he plays Claude. (He had the same type of long hair as Gavin for the majority of the show, the army cut for the finale, and then for bows he came out with his natural hair which was a different length from either previous style.)

[claudioislove]

Posted: 7/13/09 at 12:35am

Sorry, I knew it wasn't just Gavin who got fitted for his wig, I just mentioned him because I heard him specifically talk about it. I assumed that that's what they do for everyone in Broadway. And millie_dillmount is right I think, it's prob easier for Gavin, who has to do the change the vast majority of the time.

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 7/13/09 at 1:34am

BrodyFosse speaks true. Beyonce ALWAYS wears a wig in public.

As far as Creel's long wig vs. his short hair, it isn't simple a matter of it being the easier change. It is much, MUCH harder to create a convincing short haired wig in a male style in general. It is even harder when you have to hide longer hair under it. Therfore, the logical choice is to cut the hair to the shorter style and build a wig for the longer style. Keep in mind, the person's hair is still piled up under a wig, so long hair under a short wig has the potential to distort the visual shape of the head.

As far as Creel's understudies go, as they are normally ensemble / swing tracks, they require long hair for that, hence they have that, and should a short hair wig look awful, sad though it might be, it is only for once performance, not EVERY performance, you know?

Re: cost.
Hand tied human hair wigs can, and DO, run into the thousands of dollars based on where the hair is importated from, the amount of dying needed, the length of the wig, etc etc. A comparable wig made from sythetic could possibly cost only several hundred.

The hair and wigs for this production of Hair were designed by Gerard Kelly. To the best of my knowledge, Mr. Kelly does most builds for the shows he works on himself with the aid of a few assistants.

Broadway Wig Company ( http://www.broadwaywigs.com/home.html ) does great work. Among other things, they provided / built the ensemble wigs for White Christmas and the wigs for the Little Shop revival.

Broadway Wigs provides a great price breakdown for their work at http://www.broadwaywigs.com/pricing.html
As they are custom builds, the prices DO vary based on what you want, but there is a starting guide.
Updated On: 7/13/09 at 01:34 AM