Question about "Hair" on Broadway
 

If you have seen "Hair", would you take 7th & 9th grade boys to see it?

How do you feel about references to sex and full frontal nudity?

Depends on the boys. Are they both yours?

Actually, all three of them are mine. I squirmed a little through the love scene in "Terminator", but they were okay. Sort of depends on what they're doing while they're nude, and how long they're nude. I don't mind references to sex, they listen to that all day at school. But I don't want to listen to it non-stop though the whole play. I am acutally more worried about portrayals of drug use that glamorize it too much.

The "references" to sex are mimed by bodies, and there's a lot of them. Suggestive motions, if you will.

The nude scene is at the end of the first act and is "nicely" done. Low lights, lots of shadows, but if you are up close, I'm sure they'd get an eyeful.

I don't think drugs are glamorized too much...but it is Hair after all. They were plenty of kids/teens in that age range there with families.

The nude scene is not egregious - but everyone on stage is completely naked and perfectly visible unless you're in the last row and have poor vision.

You have to understand that the show is from a different era - when sex, drugs and rock n roll ruled - and is VERY political/counterculture. I would discuss it with them in advance - so they have some background and understand all of the references to the Viet Nam war - and attitudes portrayed.

(A quite conservative woman in my office saw the show and found it very objectionable - for the politics - not the nudity.) I saw the original when I was not far off them in age - but I was a child of the culture - and "got" everything.

Hmm, that's a tough one. A lot would depend on the maturity of the boys, and how comfortable you and they are about seeing the show together. The nudity is not about sex - it's used as a protest and is very tastefully done, but it's full frontal. The choreography has a lot of simulated sex.

As far as drugs - most of the second act is and extended scene where the main character is tripping. And they smoke a lot of pot throughout the show.

That being said, Hair is one of the best theatre experiences I've had. Ever. And I've seen a lot of shows. The performances are incredible - especially the two male leads.

Caissie Levy is great as Sheila (which is the real reason I chose this show) :-)

I think it depends on how comfortable you would be with it and if you think they are mature enough to see it. Kids grow up so fast these days. I know when I was young, I never would have been allowed to see it. You need to find out what could be offensive in it and then make your own decision.

For the nude scene, the actors were lined up in a row in the middle of the stage and just stood there singing. I'd guess that they were nude on stage for only about a minute or so. I think that the provacative dancing that they did in other songs while fully clothed and the simulated drug use in other songs had the potential to be more offensive to people than the nude scene. I don't know if you're familiar with the songs, but some of the lyrics in a few songs are very suggestive.

The production as a whole was the most energetic performance that I've ever seen. The actors were all over the stage and came into the audience. It was a fun show.

There are references to drugs and sex aside from the nudity, but I actually find it all a very positive message (easy enough for me to say since I don't have kids). But I would allow teens to see the show. It's much more tasteful than most rap music and less sexually charged than most movies these days.

Well stated, Doug!

I would have less of a problem letting them see it (none actually) than I would seeing it with them -- I remember seeing the [awful] movie "Varsity Blues" with my son and his friend, and I was very uncomfortable myself with them sitting, as it happened, on either side of me.

The play is in good taste but I would feel funny taking kids that age to a show with nudity.I agree with sf7307.

Uh-oh. We already have the tickets for December. Bringing two teens, 17 and 15. I'll have to conveniently "forget" to take the two opera glasses that we normally take with us to the theatre. ;-)

I wouldn't sweat it, gelatolover. I really don't think a brief peek of nudity, closeup or otherwise, will corrupt them!

Howard: gotcha! They're not as naive as we think they are, that's for sure.....

Righton, gelatolover!
I still vividly remember the time we took our then 13-year-old daughter to her first R-rated movie. As we were leaving, I made some comment to her that clearly indicated that my wife and I were uncomfortable about her being exposed to some strong four-letter words. Her response: "Oh, that's nothing compared to what I hear in school!"

I think 15 and 17 are way too old to worry about them seing someone naked. It really shouldn;t be a mystery by that age.

To the OP, 7th and 9th grade, so that would be 12 and 14 years old? The 12 year old may be to young, but likely not the 14 year old. I saw the show earlier this summer. The sexual references are there, but I don't recall their being gratuitous. There is a fair amount of pot use in the show. As to the nudity, we sat in the front mezzanine, and couldn't see anything given how the lighting was. I will say, that though I did enjoy the show, I didn't love it. It is VERY 60's, and I was born in 1966, and I thought it was too 60's for me. Thought it was an excellent production, the acting was great, the music was great, am glad I saw it, but it really didn't do all that much for me. I wonder if 12 and 14 year old kids would care all that much about it?

Agree that you would have to give the kids some background on the era for them to "get" a lot of the show. Without understanding the Viet Nam War and the counterculture to it - I'm not sure they would get the point of a lot of things.

I took my 16 year old son to see the show in July. I am going back to see it in November and this time am bringing my 12 year old daughter and her friend who is 14. I think the nudity is incidental. The message of the show - which for me is the craziness of war and the quest for peace - far outweighs any concerns you should have about nudity. Hair resonates with today's audiences as much, if not more, than it did in the 60s. Not only is this a show that is a joy to behold, it is a show that MUST be seen.

Trust your gut on this.

There are other options. I would take them to "Next to Normal"--a great musical, wonderfully performed, with a poignant message about mother love.

Thanks I am going to see it the second Sat in November, can't wait. I love the music, always have!

Thank for your opinions. I bought the front row seats for "Hair". One of the 12 year-olds does not want to see any naked people, (he tells me this after I bought the tickets). I told him that I would go wait in the hall with him until it was over. It's still 4 months away. He might change his mind by the time it gets here. We have front row mezzanine seats for "Memphis". I graduated from HS in 1970, hubby graduated in 1958 and is still a 50's R&R fan. So we can see some of my 60's stuff, some of his 50's stuff, and spend the rest of the trip talking with our children about sex, drugs, and rock & roll. Sounds like fun, don't it.

I think you misunderstand how the nudity in Hair comes about. It's the culmination of a rather emotional scene and not something you're going to be able to walk out on since it's in the middle of the show and sort of happens organically. Especially from the front row. Not only is that disrespectful to the cast, but it's also distracting. If the 12 year old can't handle this, then he shouldn't go. Sell the ticket to someone else.

Even if we are sitting on the aisle and just quietly walk out?

How are you going to know when to exit anyway. And yes, even sitting on the aisle, it's rude and disruptive to get up and leave during a show.

It would be incredibly rude and frankly pretty selfish for the other audience members if you walked out. Had you done even a simple search online you would have read enough to have been able to make a decision on your own. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hair_(musical) Notice that it says about the current production:

<red>"If you're seated on the aisle, count on [the cast] to be in your face or your lap or... braiding your tresses."</red> I suggest if you do take the boys, you have them read this wikipedia write up so they at least know what they're looking at. This was made into a movie which you could also rent.

I saw Memphis and thought it was terrific, but I'm not sure the boys will find much to relate to in that either.

If your 12 year old is uncomfortable with people being naked then I would definitely return the tickets and go to a show he would enjoy. The nudity is not incidental, it is important to the show - and it sounds like he might be too young to appreciate a lot of the lyrics, attitudes and issues discussed. This is a very political - very antiwar - show, that talks about the need of youth to change the world. It sound like he's just too immature for these themes, not just the nudity and language.

I was seated about 10 rows back, and found that the backlighting used during the nude scene rendered most of the cast as silhouettes...not all that shocking. The disrobing takes place on stage...I suppose you could have your kids close their eyes when clothing begins to be removed, as it's obvious people will soon be naked. At the end of the show, the entire audience is invited to come up on stage and join in the dance...seems that your kids would love this experience.

BTW, we have aisle tkts. I am not going to tell my DH about the "audience participation". Hmmm, is anyone nekkid when they come down the aisles? Maybe I WILL sit in the end seat! ;-)

No, no one is naked when they come down the aisle. The nudity is not that big a deal! The easiest solution would be for the 12-year-older to simply close his eyes during that segment. You'll definitely know when the nudity is about to happen, so you'll be prepared.

It's not really audience participation, but the actors do run through the aisles and stroke the hair and sometimes lean over people on the aisle. We were near the back and the actor playing Berger even stopped by us. So it's not just people on the front row, though the cast is pretty large.

Yup, I definitely got my hair mussed. It was fun.

Thanks for all of your answers. We aren’t going until 2/2010. I’ll reassess the whole thing after Christmas. I should be able to sell the tickets if I decide it is not going to be enjoyable for all of us. I don’t think the nudity is a big deal. My original concern really had to do with the drug use portrayal. I was 15 when the original opened on Broadway. I know the words to the original album by heart. I get the issues, political and cultural. We will give the kids some background so they can understand the context. I also didn’t think that sneaking out for a few minutes was a big deal either, but maybe I’m wrong about that. Eating a bag of potato chips during the performance may be incredibly rude. Bringing my baby with the ear infection would be pretty selfish. Quietly leaving for a few minutes seems, at worst, mildly annoying.
Thanks for the input on Memphis. I think my kids will find some things to enjoy in it. They should like the music, and they thought the story sounded interesting. I was surprised that they enjoyed In the Heights as much as they did.

I think that it would be rude to walk out of a show. It would be even ruder if you are in the front row.

You already know that the show has nudity (although, it is tastefully done), drug references, and language that you might find objectionable. If you have doubts about whether the show is appropriate for your children, then sell your tickets and go to a different show.

I loved Hair! I was in the 2nd row so we got a lot of attention when the actors ran all over the place. At first I was a little embarrassed but then you get used to it. The nudity was dimly lit and for only a few seconds. A 13 year old girl was sitting next to me and she covered her eyes during that part. I leaned over and told her it was "safe" to look now! At the end you can go up on stage and dance with the cast. I didn't do that but now I regret it. I think I was in shock most of the night because my nephew was born about 20 minutes before show time and he was 2.5 weeks early!

Leaving during a performance is not mildly annoying - it's very rude. At some opera and ballets - and some shows - people who come late are not allowed to be seated after the start of the show until there is a "break" in the action. And you woulnd;t be bringng an infant with an ear infection into a show - typically kids under athe age of 5 aren;t allowed at all. And I can;t imagine anyone who would spend $100 to buy an infant a ticket to a show.

And anyone crackling a bag of chips would get glares, hisses - and would stop eating. (Recently actors in a couple of shows have actually broken character when morons in the audience left their cell phones on and they rang during a performance.)

Actors - and audiences - are becoming less tolerance of those spoiling the event they've aid so much to see.

Sheesh! I know you can't bring babies to Broadway shows, and I wouldn't think of munching chips. I wuz only kidding. Like I said, I'll look at it again after Christmas and decide if we should go or sell the tickets. But thank you to all who took the time to comment.

Is "Hair" any good? I haven't seen it since the 70s, but the revival is opening in San Francisco next week, and I'm wondering whether we'll be disappointed (seats are half-price, but we got half-price seats to Blue Man Group, and were bored to tears).

I was bored at Blue Man Group and I was pretty much bored with Hair on Broadway. 1/2 price tix would be the right price.