If there are any stumbles it comes in some quibbles in the casting. Although I am uncertain why they chose to omit the very funny production number The Big Dollhouse. NBC does a creditable job of mounting a mammoth and rousing production. The story is fun, the music by and large is bright and lively, and the production numbers veer between both personal and lavish. By now most people know the story of the hit stage play and film focusing on chubby 1960s Baltimore-based teen Tracy Turnblad, whose dream of dancing on The Corny Collins Show, winning the heart of hottie Link Larkin, and championing the cause of integration for African-Americans, while taking on white Barbie nemesis Amber von Tussel and her monstrous mama Velma, producer of the very show that Tracy hopes to conquer. Mercifully, Hairspray barely edges out The Wiz as a prime example of when things come together nicely. Shortly prior to the broadcast of Hairspray Live!, Fox completely stumbled with a dunderheaded effort of The Rocky Horror Show. For every success like The Wiz, there is a misfire like The Sound of Music (is there any way to remove the horrid miscasting of Carrie Underwood in that debacle from our collective memories?). When against all odds Tracy wins a role on the show, she becomes a celebrity overnight.” Acclaimed live television director Alex Rudzinski (“Dancing with the Stars”) will join Tony-winning director Kenny Leon (“The Wiz Live!”).NBC and Fox seem to be leading the way with broadcasting live musical events and the results can be hit or miss. So, in an effort to match their courage (with considerably less risk), IndieWire will be reviewing the three-hour special as it airs. The official synopsis, per NBC, is as follows: “In ‘Hairspray Live!,’ teenager Tracy Turnblad’s dream is to dance on ‘The Corny Collins Show,’ a local TV program.

READ MORE: ‘Hairspray Live’: ‘You Can’t Stop the Beat’ Performance Offers Detailed First Look – Watch Set in Baltimore, MD during the 1960s Civil Rights movement, “ Hairspray Live!” has the opportunity to take more risks than even your typical live TV performance by drawing pressing parallels to the modern day. Wednesday night, NBC is laying it all on the line by airing a live production of “Hairspray!,” Marc Shaiman’s musical adaptation of John Waters’ 1988 film.

Watch hairspray live nbc