Michael Butler took in a production of �Hair� recently at the University of Iowa.  Preceding the production was a symposium on the 1960�s.

�These kids were really interested about what happened in that decade,� said Butler. A man who brought Hair, then an obscure Off-Broadway show, to the Great White Way in 1968.

Butler thought it would be great to have a touring production of the rock musical come to Chicago at the same time as the Democratic convention.  Butler wanted to bring the Iowa show to Chicago.  �We couldn�t get it together,� he said.  �You know academe.  But a lot of colleges do the show, so we zeroed in on a professional troupe in residence at Cal State, Fullerton.  It was quite an exceptional piece, and they jumped on the chance to tour to Chicago.�

The show, which opens Friday, will run only the month of August, but coincides with the convention.

�The last time the democrats were in Chicago when the protest movement was at its peak, Hair was on Broadway, and being staged in Chicago,� said Butler.  �It�s appropriate to bring it to Chicago at this time.�

Butler has a strong affinity for the rock musical.

�There�s no way any production can capture the electricity and spontaneity of the original.  There are many separate dimensions to the piece.  The musical score is incredibly entertaining.  But there�s something spiritual about it.  In fact, we invited the Dalai Lama to come see a special performance of the show.�

Butler is still recovering from the quick launch and closing of Pope Joan, a musical built around the legend of the only woman who became pope.  The show, which won a best new work Joseph Jefferson award when it was performed in a workshop at the Bailiwick Theater, was given a new staging at the Mercury Theater earlier this year, but closed after only a few weeks.

�That show was over promoted and under produced,� said Butler.  �The materials made it sound like we were one step from Broadway, when in fact it was just a second step workshop show.  We are going ahead with refinements to move the show eventually to New York.�

This production of Hair, however, is full blown, with a large orchestra, in a theater Butler feels has excellent acoustics.

There are no stars in this show � it�s staged with college kids, which is how the first show was and is the only way I feel the show should be cast,� he said.  �But it�s a very professional piece.  The Pacific Musical Theater is a professional troupe in residence at Cal State, Fullerton, and this will be a professional show in every way.

Copyright Coply News Service.