Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester’s new independent theatre and event space, is to stage its second in-house musical theatre production Hair in November, following the success of Parade.
It will be produced by Hope Mill’s co-owners Joseph Houston and Will Whelton and new resident producer Katy Lipson of Aria Entertainment.
The ground-breaking rock musical tells the story of The Tribe: a group of politically-active hippies living in New York and battling against conscription into the Vietnam War.
Whelton said, “Hair is my favourite musical and it has always been my dream to choreograph a production. Ever since its debut on stage in the '60s, it has been a musical that connects with its audiences and deals with heartening issues such as war, acceptance and liberation.
"Hair really defined a new age of rock musical as we know it today and I look forward to creating and re-imagining this iconic musical in our very own theatre space.”
Aria Entertainment’s residency comes with a commitment to co-producing three more new musicals at Hope Mill next year. The partnership has blossomed since the Manchester première of Parade, which had to be extended for an extra week due to demand, selling out the final two weeks with standing ovations following every performance.