Columbia Children's Theatre Presents HAIRSPRAY JR.

The 50's are out and change and hairspray are in the air! Columbia Children's Theatre (CCT) will present its YouTheatre production of Hairspray Jr. March 20 - 23 with shows Friday at 7:00 pm, Saturday at 3:00 pm and 7:00 pm, and Sunday at 3:00 pm and 7:00 pm. General admission tickets are $10 regular admission and $8 for seniors and active military with proper ID. Advance ticket purchases are strongly recommended, and may be purchased securely on-line at columbiachildrenstheatre.com. All shows take place at Columbia Children's Theatre on the second floor of Richland Mall, 3400 Forest Drive in Forest Acres. The production is sponsored by Salon Sociis, and CCT's 2014 YouTheatre season is sponsored by Staymobile.

Performed by CCT's YouTheatre, with student actors in grades 5-12, the family-friendly musical piled bouffant-high with laughter, romance, and deliriously tuneful songs is adapted from the original Broadway version which won 8 TONY Awards including Best Musical. The production is directed by veteran CCT actor Paul Lindley. Choreography is by Candace Fuller and Lisa Sendler, and the show features over 50 young Midlands' area performers including Lilly Angel, Noah Barker, Caroline Brantley, Anna Brooks, Zarina Cameron, Autumn Christy, Sydney Davis, Marissa Derrick, Joshua Diveley, Noah Diveley, Taylor Diveley, Marissa Duffield, Molly Edwards-Lehman, Absalom Fischer, Miriam Fischer, Jordan Fritts, Kaitlyn Fuller, Ilori Giles, Micheala Goodwin, Georgie Harrington, Franklin Harris, Matthew Harter, Anthony Harvey, Emma Imholz, Meghan Jerome, Laurel MacCallum, Jaida Mack, Bess Manning, Katie McConnell, Robert McCreary, Mahogany McCreary, Cole McFaden, Baker Morrison, Raleigh Norris, Summer O'Brien, Chavis O'Connor, Arden Riley, Nathaniel Riley, Olivia Robinson, Hope Smart, Grace Smith, Mary Smith, Olivia Smith, Riley Smith, Brianna Surface, Carter Verwers, Kirsten Whitaker, Joshua Wright, and Sierra Wright.

It's 1962, and spunky plus-size teen Tracy Turnblad has one big dream -- to dance on the popular Corny Collins Show. When she finally gets her shot, she's transformed from social outcast to sudden star. In balancing her new-found power with her desire for justice, Tracy fights to dethrone the reigning Miss Teen Hairspray, Amber von Tussle, and integrates a TV network in the process. With the help of her outsized mom, Edna, and guest DJ Motormouth Maybelle, the rhythm of Tracy's new beat just might prove unstoppable.

"The mature and political subject matter made us really think hard before putting this show on our YouTheatre season," said CCT Artistic Director Jerry Stevenson. "But the up-beat message and the themes of self-acceptance, diversity, and tolerance made us realize that this is the perfect show for these kids and our audiences at this particular time in our country's development."

This production is part of Music Theatre International's Broadway Junior collection, which reformats full-length productions for young performers, while still maintaining the fun and excitement of the original. Audiences will delight to their favorite scenes and songs including "Good Morning, Baltimore," "You Can't Stop the Beat," "Run and Tell That," and many more.

Columbia Children's Theatre is a professional resident not-for-profit theatre dedicated to providing quality live theatre experiences for families and young audiences, and is supported in part by the City of Forest Acres, The Cultural Council of Richland and Lexington Counties, and the South Carloina Arts Commission, which receives funding from the National Endowment for the Arts.

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