VIDEO: Predominantly Black and Predominantly White Houston High Schools Combine To Perform HAIRSPRAY

When Marc Shaiman, Scott Wittman, Thomas Meehan and Mark O'Donnell wrote HAIRSPRAY, based on John Waters' cult film about racial integration at a 1960s TV dance program, they not only created a big Tony-winning Broadway hit that went on to become a feature film and an upcoming NBC live television event, they provided high schools with an opportunity to allow students to act out a story of kids their own age learning lessons about racism, body-shaming and sexual identity.

Typically, a school would have to have a diverse mix of students to properly cast HAIRSPRAY, but in the video, Houston's KHOU television reports of two local schools, 85% black Carver H.S. and 85% white The Kinkaid School, who joined forces for performances this weekend of the hit musical comedy that featured a 160 member cast.

During the three months of rehearsal time, when students were bussed to each other's schools, headlines were filled with controversial stories about the country's current racial issues. Though strangers to each other at first, the teenagers began bonding and forming friendships while opening up their feelings about the world around them and their own person experiences with racism.