Kirkcaldy Youth Music Theatre prepare a European premiere

Kirkcaldy Youth Theatre will perform the European premiere of Cry Baby the musical at the Adam Smith Theatre, Kirkcaldy

This will be the group’s 59th production and the 60 strong cast have been rehearsing since September, for the show which runs at the Adam Smith Theatre from February 22 to 24.

Based on the John Waters 1990 cult film of the same name, Mark O’Donnell and Thomas Meehan, the story writers of the highly successful musical ‘Hair Spray’ set out to emulate their success, moving away from the theme of race relations in 1950s Baltimore to a story about social class and interaction in the same era.

They teamed up with David Javerbaum and Adam Schlesinger who provided the music and lyrics.

The musical premiered at the La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego in November 2007.

Previews then started at the Marquis Theatre on Broadway in March 2008, before opening in April that year.

Mixed reviews resulted in ‘Cry-Baby’ only playing 45 previews and 68 performances before closing.

Despite that, the show achieved four Tony Award nominations and won a Drama Desk award for outstanding choreography.

In the production it’s 1954. Everyone likes Ike, nobody likes communism, and Wade “Cry-Baby” Walker is the coolest boy in Baltimore. He’s a bad boy with a good cause - truth, justice, and the pursuit of rock and roll.

Cry-Baby and the square rich girl Allison are star-crossed lovers at the centre of this world. Fuelled by hormones and the new rhythms of rock and roll, she turns her back on her squeaky clean boyfriend Baldwin to become a “drape” (a Baltimore juvenile delinquent) and Cry-Baby’s moll.

At the other end of the topsy-turvy moral meritocracy of 1954 America, Baldwin as the king of the squares leads his close-harmony pals against the juvenile delinquents, who are ultimately arrested for arson, sending the drapes all off to prison.

Join Kirkcaldy Youth Music Theatre as they present this jumping, jiving, rebellious teen comedy event!

With an unforgetable score featuring a great mix of rockabilly and traditional music Baltimore’s energetic juvenile delinquents will dance their way right into your heart!

Tickets are available from the Adam Smith Theatre box office or Harry Kerr by calling (01592) 200094.