The Next Link: Teen Idol Joins Broadway's Hairspray

By Kenneth Jones
03 Jan 2007

Ashley Parker Angel will make his Broadway debut as high school heartthrob Link Larkin in Broadway's Hairspray Jan. 19 at the Neil Simon Theatre.

Ashley Parker Angel became a star on the ABC series "Making the Band." The show chronicled the formation of his multi-platinum recording group O-Town, known for their hit "All or Nothing." Angel has toured internationally, recently appeared in his own MTV series "There and Back," and last year released his solo album "Soundtrack to Your Life." His single "Let You Go" achieved the highest debut on Billboard's hot singles chart of any artist in 2006 and spent weeks at number one on MTV's "TRL."

Also joining the Hairspray cast are Brynn O'Malley as Amber Von Tussle (Jan. 19) and Susan Mosher as the Female Authority Figure (Jan. 16).

In Hairspray "it's 1962 — the '50s are out and change is in the air. Baltimore's Tracy Turnblad, a big girl with big hair and an even bigger heart, has only one passion — to dance. She wins a spot on the local TV dance program, 'The Corny Collins Show' and, overnight, is transformed from outsider to irrepressible teen celebrity. But can a plus-size trendsetter in dance and fashion vanquish the program's reigning princess, win the heart of heartthrob Link Larkin, and integrate a television show without denting her 'do?"

Hairspray is based on the New Line Cinema film written and directed by John Waters, who serves as a creative consultant on the musical comedy. It features a book by Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan, and a score by five-time Academy Award nominee Marc Shaiman and lyrics by Shaiman and Scott Wittman.

Hairspray is directed by Jack O'Brien and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell; scenic design is by David Rockwell; costume design is by William Ivey Long; lighting design is by Kenneth Posner; and sound design is by Steve C. Kennedy.

Hairspray will celebrate its fifth anniversary on Broadway in August 2007. It's the winner of eight 2003 Tony Awards, including Best Musical.

The hit currently stars Shannon Durig as Tracy Turnblad, Blake Hammond as Edna Turnblad, Diana DeGarmo as Penny Pingleton, Stephen DeRosa as Wilbur Turnblad, Darlene Love as Motormouth Maybelle, Tevin Campbell as Seaweed J. Stubbs, Jonathan Dokuchitz as Corny Collins, Lisa Jolley as Female Authority Figure, Isabel Keating as Velma Von Tussle, Tara Macri as Amber Von Tussle, Kevin Meaney as Male Authority Figure, Naturi Naughton as Inez, and Aaron Tzveit as Link Larkin.

For more information about Hairspray, please consult www.hairsprayonbroadway.com.