'Beehive' cast flipping their wigs on the run

By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Writer

Each cast member — from left, Riya Davis, Bryna O'Neill, Alison Maldonado, Patrice Scott, Sandy deOliveira, Michelle Baltazar and Tricia Marciel — of "Beehive" goes through several wig changes during each performance. The hairsprayed styles help frame the 1960s girl-group music of the show. Gregory Yamamoto • The Honolulu Advertiser 'Beehive' A musical by Larry Gallagher, produced by Manoa Valley Theatre Opens at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday; repeats at 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays, 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 4 p.m. Sundays, through March 23 Manoa Valley Theatre $30; $10 for those 25 or younger; $5 discounts for seniors and military; American Express Night special for March 6 and 7 (buy one ticket, get one free, with AmEx charges) 988-6131 Cast: Michelle Baltazar, Riya Davis, Sandy de Oliveira, Alison Maldonado, Tricia Marciel, Bryna O'Neil, Patrice Scott Director, choreographer: Andrew Sakaguchi Musical director: Alethea Train

But it's about beehive hairdos, too. Wigs of every color imaginable. Hair spray. Gargantuan lashes.

"There are seven girls in the cast; each wears a minimum of seven or eight changes," said wigmaster Greg Howell, who had to acquire, style and maintain the hair pieces and figure out how best the cast could navigate take-off-and-put-on changes backstage. Quickly.

"We have a pretty good repertoire," Howell, who works at Paul Brown Salon, said about the 'dos.

Every color in the rainbow is represented, he said.

"There's a bright blue, a green, and a multicolored one. And a fluorescent red, a purple and one that glows in the dark."

Some wigs retain their natural colors.

Some have a good half-can of hairspray on them.

"Some changes are so quick, we devised a way of building wig racks, like turnstyles, that the girls grab wigs from and run, for quick changes."

There is nothing like a good piece of hair, he said, to give "Beehive" its buzz.

"It's easy to acquire," he said of the headpieces. "There's a professional wig source in New York. But once you get them, you need to cut and design and comb. And, of course, ratting and teasing the hair till they're high as the sky. In the end, each one is a piece of sculpture."

"To make sure you retain a style, you bullet-proof it. The secret formula is the hair spray. You can comb through it, and it won't undo."

Besides hair, "Beehive" required eyelashes — some so gigantic, they flutter like butterflies.

"Ultimately, the lashes required special instruction on how to keep them on," said Howell.

"Some are an inch long. Doesn't sound like a lot till you put one on your eye — and try to see. It's like little shade awnings, so the girls had to learn how to look from those literal shades over their eyes."

Some lashes are fancy-dancy numbers favored by drag queens. "With rhinestones or glitter flecks attached to the base," said Howell. "It's really a girly-girl fantasy night out."

Dressers on each side of the stage will help with the quick transformation of wigs and looks. With some actresses boasting long hair and no desire to cut their tresses to a shorter, manageable length, "we put on adjustable wig caps and wrapped the head. Allows multiple wig changes without cutting the hair."

Even teased to tower heights, the wigs aren't that heavy, said Howell. What weighs more, said Howell, are the occasional shaggy cut, longer wigs, "because of all that hair."

For the cast, the wigs provided a sense of time-tripping. Most of the cast are in their 20s (one is 14) and love and know the music, said Howell.

"It's really not dated," he said of the musical riches. "It's so classic, it still has life. Instead of (using) Prozac, come to 'Beehive' to be rejuvenated."