Tracy Turnblad- Mezzo - female 16-25 yrs old. Heavy set high school girl. Loves to dance and does so very well. She is a head of her time. Exudes confidence. Nothing will stop her. Sweet and is nice to everyone.
Corny Collins- tenor - male 25-35 yrs old. Ryan Secrest/Dick Clark type. Local television personality. Has his own top 10 dance show.
Edna Turnblad- tenor - male/female 35-55 yrs old. Heavy set stay at home mom. No self-esteem. Earns a living taking in others laundry and mending. She is a skinny young thing stuck in a fat women’s body.
Penny Pingleton- belt - female 16-25 yrs old. Nerdy high school girl. Tracy’s best (only) friend. Penny is waiting for that moment when she can finally break the bonds of her religiously fanatical mother.
Velma Von Tussle- belt - female 35+ yrs old. A BOMB Shell. Aging beauty queen who is reliving her youth through her daughter Amber. The local TV station manager.
Amber Von Tussle- belt - female 16-25 yrs old. A Barbie Doll. If her looks don’t kill, her personality will. Her talents are average. She has an over inflated image of herself. Like mother (Velma) like daughter.
Link Larkin- baritone - male 16-25 yrs old. A heart throb. The high school stud. Everyone likes him. His personality is genuine.
Seaweed J. Stubbs- tenor - ethnic male 16-25 yrs old. Good looking and can dance like no body’s business. Not the most popular student in high school. He likes to bend the rules...a little.
Little Inez- belt - ethnic female 10-16 yrs old. Older than her years. She is always under foot. She longs desperately to be one of the teenagers.
Motormouth Maybelle- alto - ethnic female 35+ yrs old. “Big, Black & Beautiful” Think Tyler Perry’s “Madea” (hal-le-lu-uerrrrrrr) only younger. Everyone loves Maybelle. Everyone but Velma that is.
Wilbur Turnblad- baritone - 35-55 yrs old. Tracy’s father. Edna’s husband. He owns a Novelty & Magic Store. Tracy gets her optimism and confidence from him. He is madly in love with Edna and half her size.
Prudy Pingleton- 35+ yrs old. Penny’s mother. A mousey women. Her looks will fool you. She is a religious person who believes if you are not saved you will go to .... She is going to do the saving.
Council Members- 6 male & 6 female 16-25 yrs old. High school students. They are good dancers and are seen daily on the Corny Collins Show. They are the popular kids.
Character Descriptions
“Hairspray” the musical
Non-Council Members- 6 ethnic male & 6 ethnic female 16-25 yrs old. High school students. The are great dancers and seen only once a week on Motormouth Maybelle’s show. They are the not so popular kids.
The Dynamites- Various - 3 ethnic female 25+ yrs old. A vocal trio. Think Diana Ross & The Supremes or Biance & Destinies Child.
Ensemble- Various - male and female of various age and race who will play multiple character roles.
Videos
