HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
#1HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 12:02am
Somehow I missed this. Has anybody read it? Thoughts? I've heard mixed things about some of the other books on Hair, but I'm curious about this one.
http://www.amazon.com/Hair-Story-Show-Defined-Generation/dp/0762441283/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1311220783&sr=1-1
#2HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 12:14amDefinitely worth it. I'm not big on books about shows, but this one is ace.
#2HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 12:23am
I am, so I think I might like it. I really like the Cabaret and Aida ones. Is this similar?
What I really want is to get my hands on a copy of this:
http://www.amazon.com/Letting-down-hair-tribe---Aquarius/dp/0525630058/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1311222149&sr=8-1
I'd like to spend less but I don't think I'll do better. I've tried libraries in two states and nobody can get it.
#3HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 12:57am
Much more indepth than either CABARET or AIDA. It not only talks about the show but the political environment that provided its gestation.
I'd be careful with the other book. As one of the commentors at Amazon noted, some of the stories she tells arent exactly true.
#4HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 1:07amAll memoir goes with a grain of salt.
#5HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 1:39amI just bought The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation and I think it's wonderful. DEFINITELY worth it - I only paid $15 for mine on Amazon. And it comes with a poster! Haha.
#6HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 5:26am
I still think the definitive book on Hair has yet to be written. The memoirs are too personally motivated, and the more scholarly approaches (by Barbara Lee Horn and Scott Miller respectively) are too cold and clinical (Miller's is markedly less so, but still comes from a rather biased position). The book that is the subject of this thread, in my estimation, is just a coffee table book that barely scratches the surface.
As shown by Lorrie Davis' memoir Letting Down My HAIR and the recent Jonathon Johnson publication Good HAIR Days (which included his personal story and also the personal stories of several previous cast members, as well as a Master Cast List with chronologies of the lead roles in major companies), there is large potential for what I would call a "Voices of the Tribe" project, an anthology a la Making It on Broadway that runs down stories about the show by category (Gerry & Jim, Michael Butler, backstage politics [sexual and otherwise], a chapter on the movie, etc.). There are a lot of memories and history surrounding this show and the times it came out of, from all cast and crew of first run productions and tours, and others who were there, that would be great to get down on paper. It'd be a purely academic exercise, clearly, because I don't know what audience would buy it, but it would certainly prove to be fascinating research material for future productions.
I also think that the definitive publication of Hair's script as a purely academic exercise would be an intriguing possibility. The script originally published by Pocket Books in 1969 reflected a version of the show that has never been staged anywhere, a hybrid of Off-Broadway and Broadway material and some material never seen in either guise of the show. The first step would be replacing it with an accurate version of the script. Then, a la Martin Gardner's Annotated Alice, it could provide new context to what many regard as a collection of lyrics, notes, some dialogue, and scanty stage directions, by offering explanations and derivations of lines, essays on relevant topics such as the Vietnam War, the hippie culture of the times, the peace movement, and extensive production support.
None of the above will ever happen, but a man can dream.
#7HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 7:15amTo those who are still in school, see if your library will do an interlibrary loan and if any other school library have that book. That's how I got tons of books I wanted but couldn't buy.
#8HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 8:13amI thought the book was very well done. Mine came with a slightly 'warped' cover but otherwise intact. It was only $6 through one of Amazons's selelrs.
Luv2goToShows
Broadway Star Joined: 9/13/09
#9HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 12:08pm
Thanks for the heads up on this book, I just bought a copy on Half.com for $4.99 (New~$1+$3.99 shipping).
RyanB83
Chorus Member Joined: 9/26/08
#10HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 12:43pm
Seeing the recent revival made me wonder if we can still have a Broadway show that can "define a generation"
http://www.crazytownblog.com/crazytown/2011/07/where-where-where-where-where-where-where-where.html
#11HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 1:09pm
Except that Hair in no way defined a generation, but was instead only artificially defined by one aspect of a generation.
Read William Goldman's chapter about Hair in his indispensable book "The Season." He notes that the show that went to Broadway (and that we all now know) was radically different from the original, and pandered to tourists and the bourgeoisie, who wanted to gawk at hippies (who had been around for some time and most of whom were already moving on to other things), but were afraid to go to their "habitat," preferring instead to see a relatively sanitized version (with nudity!) in a safe neighborhood.
This is a cultural oddity explored by Julian Barnes in his novel "England England" - that the middle classes (the herd) prefer to experience reductive and safe imitations of culture (Epcot Center) rather than the more difficult real thing.
#12HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 1:40pmWell, yes, but how many times have we seen a show "changed" to accommodate the trade? There was a reason why HAIR was played one way at the NYSF and another when it made the move to Broadway, and that was simply to get the audience. Yes, it was "safer", but let's face it, had they not made those changes, we probably wouldnt be having this discussion.
#13HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 1:44pmAnother interesting read is the chapter on Hair in Free for All, the story of Joseph Papp and the Public. It's a collection of personal recollections, so it's interesting to see the conflicting memories and opinions.
#14HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 2:00pm
SeanMartin, the point I was making was that we have reports form at least one source (there are actually more) who saw all three versions of Hair and who say the earlier versions were vastly better, more interesting, more textured, a more genuine representation of the hippie response to Vietnam.
It's an ancient tale - lower your sights, dumb down your work if you want the herd to give you lots of money for it.
Yes, the Hair we now know made more money; but I've never read an opinion that it's superior to its earlier version. And that seems to be why it's as popular as it is - the masses prefer the cheap imitation to the real article.
#15HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 3:55pmDidnt say it was better or worse, simply that had they not changed it, this thread probably wouldnt exist... which we all know is true. The trade wouldnt have accepted the original version, and the show would have closed, as the proverb has it, on page six. So they cleaned it up a bit, made it a bit more palatable, and we all moved on.
#16HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 3:59pm
So they cleaned it up a bit, made it a bit more palatable, and we all moved on.
It's probably more complicated and interesting than that. Read the Gibson description.
#17HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 4:07pmYes, probably. But cut to its essence, and that's what happened. Now, anything else?
#18HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 4:44pm
Oh, sure, why not, since you don't seem to have much interest in finding out something you don't already know.
Here are some of the changes between the Public/Cheetah (original) Hair, and the tourist-friendly Broadway version:
Claude was changed from an alien movie director to a human draftee
13 songs were added
Nudity was added
The director was replaced
One of the authors, although far too old for the part, replaced the actor playing Claude
The ending was changed from an accusation against the military machine to a celebratory/happy procession
Joe Papp chose not to put Public money in the Broadway version, finding it inferior
As a side note, the show is considered by many to be a processed version of Megan Terry's Viet Rock (in which Jerome Ragni had appeared), a much grittier, more intense rock musical about hippie response to Viet Nam.
Happy to do your research for you. Even "cut to its essence," it was clearly a lot more than a simple "clean up."
#19HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 5:11pm
Wow, you forgot to ladle on the extra serving of snark with all that.
Anything else?
Child, I'm quite aware of the changes. There's nothing on your list that's news. 13 songs added? They wrote over a hundred in the process of putting it together. A changed ending? Yep, "clean up". The author playing one of the leads? Knew that too.
Sheesshh.
#20HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 6:12pmIf anyone's from Canada, Chapters/Indigo/Coles are selling the book for $1 in stores. Not sure about online.
#21HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 6:16pm
Now that you ladies are done with the slapfest (and I would love to know how newintown figured out my name, though I suppose it's not an impossible feat), I'd like to add that the downtown audience the show supposedly depicted on stage (the hippies in particular) never liked the show in any of its versions. People from the world of rock (John Lennon and John Fogerty are two who come to mind) viewed it as commercial pap at every stage. (See the link below for Fogerty's commentary, which basically covers all of the admittedly legitimate complaints the counterculture had about the show.) Other hippie backlash came from political radicals like Abbie Hoffman who were pissed when the show refused to do benefits that would fund non-peaceful activities. It became a hit on Broadway largely because of creative advertising, especially rumors about what the nude scene entailed when the show hadn't yet been seen by a lot of people.
In any version, the show was never meant to be an actual reflection of what was going on in the streets. Ragni and Rado pushed the authenticity when it was the big draw, but later on admitted that they just wanted to capture the feeling, the look, and offer a snapshot of the era. A snapshot isn't always the clearest picture.
Creedence's Fogerty: "'Hair' Is Not Where It's At"
#22HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 8:51pmI don't get the part of Claude being an alien movie director in the Public version of the show. Jerry Tallmer reviewed it for The New York Post on October 30, 1967 and he mentions Walker Daniel as playing an unwilling hippie draftee not an alien movie director.
#23HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/21/11 at 8:57pm
Michael Smith of The Village Voice crucified the original Joseph Papp/Public Theater production calling it among other things: phony.
Original 1967 Off-Broadway Production of HAIR gets crucified by The Village Voice -1967
Updated On: 7/21/11 at 08:57 PM
#24HAIR: The Story of a Show That Defined a Generation
Posted: 7/22/11 at 12:25am
Lordy!
Briefly: agree with the express reservations about the existing academic texts. I am so much for academic writing about the theater, but those in particular have struck me as inappropriately clinical. Free For All and The Season are staples on my shelf. Love them both. I guess I'm looking for something more in-depth but also middle-ground on the fluff/academic spectrum, when it may not in fact exist. I might check this one out anyway. I have a soft spot for theater coffee table books, even if it isn't the most stimulating piece of writing ever.
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