Four Hairsprays, one Baltimore: The city in trans-medial adaptation | Intellect Skip to content
1981
Volume 12, Issue 3
  • ISSN: 1750-3159
  • E-ISSN: 1750-3167

Abstract

By comparing John Waters’ 1988 film with its adaptations narratologically, previous studies of the film have treated the process of adaptation as a zero-sum game that diminishes the political stakes with each iteration. With this article, I suggest that generic tools such as mise-en-scène and choreography have the capacity to transform discourses instead of merely supplanting them. To better understand the discursive spaces opened up by the trans-medial adaptation process, I read the opening scene of Waters’ film and its three subsequent adaptations as a discourse of the city, following Annette Insdorf’s assertion that a narrative’s first moments reflect significant thematic and aesthetic moves on the part of its creators.

Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journals/10.1386/smt.12.3.367_1
2018-12-01
2024-04-23
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

References

  1. Auslander, P.. ( 2008), Liveness, Abingdon:: Routledge;.
    [Google Scholar]
  2. Feuer, J.. ( 1993), The Hollywood Musical, Bloomington, IN:: Indiana University Press;.
    [Google Scholar]
  3. Hairspray ( 2003), DVD, videotaped at the Neil Simon Theatre (unpublished), Theater on Film and Tape Archive, New York Library for the Performing Arts.
  4. Heller, D.. ( 2011), Hairspray, Chichester:: Wiley-Blackwell;.
    [Google Scholar]
  5. Hutcheon, L.. ( 2013), A Theory of Adaptation, Abingdon:: Routledge;.
    [Google Scholar]
  6. Insdorf, A.. ( 2017), Cinematic Overtures: How to Read Opening Scenes, New York:: Columbia University Press;.
    [Google Scholar]
  7. Lotz, A.. ( 2014), The Television Will be Revolutionized, New York:: New York University Press;.
    [Google Scholar]
  8. Mokdad, L.. ( 2018;), ‘ At the intersection of music, sexuality and race: Hairspray’s generic and aesthetic variances. ’, in G., Rodosthenous. (ed.), Twenty-First Century Musicals, Abingdon:: Routledge;, pp. 11020.
    [Google Scholar]
  9. O’Donnell, M.,, Meehan, T.,, Shaiman, M., and Wittman, S.. ( 2003), Hairspray: The Roots, New York:: Faber and Faber;.
    [Google Scholar]
  10. Tinkcom, M.. ( 2010;), ‘ “Dozing off during history”: Hairspray’s iterations and the gift of black music. ’, in S., Cohan. (ed.), The Sound of Musicals, London:: British Film Institute;, pp. 20011.
    [Google Scholar]
  11. Russell, C.. ( 2018;), ‘ Four Hairsprays, one Baltimore: The city in trans-medial adaptation. ’, Studies in Musical Theatre, 12: 3, pp. 367375, doi: 10.1386/smt.12.3.367_1
    [Google Scholar]
http://instance.metastore.ingenta.com/content/journals/10.1386/smt.12.3.367_1
Loading
  • Article Type: Article
Keyword(s): adaptation; Broadway; city; film; Hairspray; John Waters
This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was a success
Invalid data
An error occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error