HAIR CAST FINALLY GELS
By Richard Ouzounian
Theatre Critic

The Age of Aquarius is finally getting ready to dawn.

CanStage is expected to officially announce today the casting for its final production of the year, "the tribal love rock musical" Hair, which is scheduled to open at the Bluma Appel Theatre on March 30.

More than 600 performers auditioned for the 20 roles available.

Director Robert Prior and choreographer Stephen Hues joined with original author-lyricist James Rado in making the final selection.

The result is what CanStage artistic producer Martin Bragg calls "the next generation of extraordinary musical talent in this country," a group of fresh faces that will bring the energy necessary to breathe new life into this celebration of flower-power, freak-outs and love-ins.

Jamie McKnight, currently appearing as the Prince in Ross Petty's annual panto, Snow White and the Group of Seven, will star as Claude, the young man whose draft notice sets the action of the show in motion.

Craig Burnatowski will play his anarchic buddy, Berger, devoted to sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll in all their forms. Burnatowski is a York University graduate whose credits include appearances on Queer as Folk and Missing.

And Karen Burthwright, seen locally as one of "The Dynamites" in Hairspray, will play Sheila, the woman they're both involved with.

The remaining members of the "tribe" will be played by Matthew Boden, Matthew Brown, Kimmy Choi, Kevin Dennis, Gerrard Everard, Ryan Field, Alana Hibbert, Bryan Hindle, Andrew Kushnir, David Mongar, Katrina Reynolds, Julius Sermonia, Valerie Stanois, Zachary Stevenson, Sheena Turcotte, Cleopatra Williams and Naomi Zara.

Hair was first presented at Joseph Papp's Public Theatre in October 1967 and later moved to Broadway in April 1968, where it ran for more than four years. It was an international phenomenon, spinning off hit companies around the world, including a 53-week run at the Royal Alex in 1970.

Book and lyrics were by Rado and Gerome Ragni, two out-of-work actors. The music was by Canadian Galt MacDermot. The CanStage version, produced in association with Dancap Private Equity, begins previews on March 20 and is scheduled to run until June 17, although if this Hair keeps growing, it could easily turn the rest of the summer of 2006 into a repeat of the Summer of Love.

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