STAGE TUBE: Double the Edna, Double the Fun - Ball and Jupitus Perform on 'Never Mind the Buzzcocks'
By: Robert Diamond Dec. 07, 2009
It was two Edna's for the price of one on the British television show 'Never Mind the Buzzcocks' this weekend as Michael Ball and Phil Jupitus shared in the spirit of HAIRSPRAY and performed a bit of "You Can't Stop the Beat".
Phill Jupitus is currently starring as larger than life heroine Edna Turnblad (the role which Michael Ball created in the West End) who must help her big-haired, big-hearted daughter Tracy fulfil her destiny....if she can just leave the family apartment. Belinda plays Velma Von Tussle, glamorous white supremacist and controller of the local TV station, who is out to thwart Tracy's plans, and Sharon is Motormouth Mabel, celebrity DJ and owner of Baltimore's biggest set of lungs!
Phill Jupitus is a comedian, broadcaster, writer and actor who has appeared on British television & radio and the stage for over 20 years. His career began at record label Go Discs where he was press officer for The Housemartins and directed videos for Billy Bragg and Kirsty McColl. He also worked as a performance poet and compered for acts like Madness, The Who and Paul Weller before becoming a regular fixture on the UK comedy circuit. He has appeared on many television and radio panel shows including "QI" and "News Quiz", as well as being a regular team captain on the hit BBC 2 show "Never Mind The Buzzcocks", and has toured extensively with his one man shows. As a DJ, Phil played the first ever record on BBC 6Music as host of the "Breakfast Show", which he presented for five years. He is also a columnist (and sometime cartoonist) for The Times's football supplement The Game and regularly records very successful football and music podcasts.
The musical continues to break all box office records at the theatre and is now booking until April 2010.
"HAIRSPRAY" is produced in the West End by Stage Entertainment with Margo Lion, The Baruch/Viertel/Routh/Frankel Group and New Line Cinema in association with others from the Broadway producing team.
"HAIRSPRAY" opened at the Neil Simon Theatre in New York in August 2002 to rave reviews and public acclaim. "HAIRSPRAY" subsequently swept the board at the 2003 Tony Awards, winning 8 including ‘Best Musical', the Drama Desk Awards, winning 10 including ‘Best Musical', and the Outer Critics Circle Awards, winning 5 including ‘Best Broadway Musical'. "HAIRSPRAY" also won the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for ‘Best Musical' and the Drama League Award for ‘Outstanding Musical Production'. The show has also played two hugely successful US tours as well as seasons in Toronto and Las Vegas, and further afield in South Africa, Brazil and Scandinavia.
"HAIRSPRAY" has a book by Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan, music by Marc Shaiman and lyrics by Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman. The musical is based on the New Line Cinema film, written and directed by John Waters. The musical is directed by Jack O'Brien and choreographed byJerry Mitchell. The scenic design is by David Rockwell, the costumes by William Ivey Long, the lighting by Kenneth Posner and the sound by Steve C. Kennedy. With orchestrations by Harold Wheeler and arrangements by Marc Shaiman, the musical direction is by Lon Hoyt. The West End production of "HAIRSPRAY" is staged by the entire original Broadway creative team.
The performance schedule for HAIRSPRAY also changes this Autumn. Beginning on Sunday 8 November the show will run Tuesday - Saturday at 7.30pm, with matinees on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday at 3.00pm. Tickets, priced from £22.50 - £62.50, are available from the Shaftesbury Theatre Box Office on 0207 379 5399 or by visiting www.hairspraythemusical.com.
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