Can an all-singing, all-dancing production of a hit film and stage musical be put together in just a week and a day? That was the question posed by the Stagecoach Theatre Arts team, and the answer became clear last Friday night at the Headington Theatre.

Set in Baltimore, Maryland, as the 1950s fade away and the 1960s burst into full colour, Hairspray is a tune-filled tale with heart and soul, and producer Maya Sprigg, with her cast of 12- to 18- year-olds, delivered it with gusto. The production was filled with pitch-perfect performances. Amy Vicary-Smith and Clemi Collett, as Tracy Turnblad and Penny Pingleton respectively, offered great chemistry as heroine and off-kilter sidekick, while Arran Johnson as the unforgettable Edna Turnblad earned the last — and the loudest — laugh every time. In terms of vocal talents — and there was no shortage — it was Ruby Crepin-Glyne, as Motormouth Maybelle, whose rendition of I Know Where I’ve Been that really stole the show. It should also be noted that several members had joined the cast from the Maltese contingency of Stagecoach and not only learned their lines and lyrics in just a few days but did so seamlessly in their second language. The use of projections featuring footage of J.F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King, as well as the ever-resounding words of both men, proved a shrewd tool when it came to setting the more serious undertones of the larger-than-life musical. It would have been easy for a show put together on such a short timescale to seem rushed and disjointed, but the all-round professionalism and impressive finish of the Stagecoach Theatre Arts’ Hairspray made it almost impossible to believe that the actors had been cast little more than a week earlier.

It is safe to say that the group showed their immense commitment and ample enjoyment as they met their formidable task with resounding success.