By Lynn Venhaus

With magical Muny moments aplenty, the joy juggernaut “Hairspray” launched the 108^th season with heart, humor and humanity.

Stacked with stand-out performances, this production celebrates change agents, set on the cusp of the monumental cultural shifts that would define the 1960s, and is a kicky, kitschy kaleidoscope of comical zingers and 60s beats.

Director Seth Sklar-Hein brought out the infectious dance-party energy, and his fast-paced show is just pure fun! A flawless, turbo-charged cast demonstrates why this 2002 Tony-winning musical continues to defy tradition with its cheeky wit, upbeat approach and timeless freedom of expression theme.

Let’s hear it for the outsiders – and Tracy Turnblad’s optimism! Set in 1962 Baltimore, plus-size teenage Tracy has a dream – to dance with the cool kids on the popular TV program “The Corny Collins Show.” With her slick moves, she earns a spot and winds up leading a movement for racial integration. Oh — and gets the cute guy!

“I just don’t understand why we can’t all dance together,” she says to the black teens who’ve become her friends (in detention and dancing at platter parties).

A marvel in motion, the indefatigable Katy Geraghty embodied Tracy with unadulterated glee. A scene-stealer in the Muny’s “Sister Act” and “Bring It On!,” Geraghty endeared as a triple treat, whirling, twirling and unfurling Tracy’s positivity in her signature songs: “Good Morning Baltimore” and “I Can Hear the Bells,” in addition to leading the company in “Welcome to the ‘60s” and an exuberant “You Can’t Stop the Beat.”

Also defying America’s narrow beauty standards is marquee headliner Richard Kind as Tracy’s big-hearted but insecure laundress mother Edna. Kind, star of stage and screen, embraced this distinctive gender-flipped role by warmly revealing Edna’s many facets – her insecurities, confident transformation, and devotion to her daughter and husband Wilbur (a sensational John Bolton).

With his raspy voice and expressive face, the beloved Kind is a natural as this larger-than-life figure. A Drama Desk Award winner and Tony nominee, his Swiss-watch comedic timing is impressive.

Commanding the stage in the finale, Kind charmed as shiny happy Edna, clad in snazzy red sequins, a wondrous sight to behold. His sweet duet with Bolton, “You’re Timeless to Me,” is a highlight.

From the principal parts to the chorus, this spirited well-cast ensemble is one of the strongest to grace the Muny stage in recent memory. Besides the terrific Turnblad trio, Charity Angel Dawson and the appropriately named Joy Elizabeth Rhodes knocked it out of Forest Park as Motormouth Mabel and Little Inez, a mother-and-daughter powerhouse from the record shop on ‘the other side of town.’

Dawson brought the house down with the soulful ‘11 o’clock number’ “I Know Where I’ve Been” and joined the bluesy anthem “Big, Bold and Beautiful” with Rhodes.

The pint-sized dynamo Rhodes belted out “Run and Tell That” with her brother Seaweed J. Stubbs (marvelous sparkplug Nicholas A. Wilkinson), showing tremendous poise. A star is born.

Special mention to The Dynamites, that stylish trio of Taylor Colleton as Shayna, Indya Lincicome as Judine and Tatiana Lofton as Kamilah, swirling in costume designer Tristan Raines’ sparkly girl-group finery.

Raines’ vibrant vintage style is spot-on, a SweeTARTS palette of pastels, plaids and floral prints that pop in 50s A-line dresses and bouncy skirts, before the mod look of Carnaby Street arrived. Integral are the period-specific wig designs by Ashley Rae Callahan, for the teased bouffant hairdos, pageboys, and flips.

Scenic designer Christine Peters smartly chose bright retro colors and contributed eye-catching vintage signage for the storefronts in Baltimore, including Wilbur’s novelty joke shop the Har-de-Har Shop and Motormouth Mabel’s record shop.

(A nice nostalgic nod is the Sealtest Ice Cream sign, which was a national brand produced at the former St. Louis Dairy Company location where Energizer Park is now, known for its massive iconic clock for decades).

Sklar-Heyn’s staging, using the turntable, is seamless, and Nathan Scheuer’s fluid black-and-white video design added depth to the storytelling (and flying pink flamingos!). So did Rob Denton’s lighting design, which amplified the feel-good atmosphere, and Joshua Hummel’s sound design, which reinforced the musical’s peppy rhythm.

The girl power is noteworthy, with perky Ashlyn Maddox as Tracy’s sheltered best friend Penny Pingleton, who gets more animated on her personal liberation journey, while Hannah Solow is funny as her overbearing, ultra-conservative mother Prudy.

The vain blonde villains Amber and Velma Von Tussle (Madison Thompson and Sara Gettelfinger) look like magazine-cover models but are despicable in their devious ways, trying to block Tracy at every turn, and resorting to underhanded methods. Thompson and Gettelfinger are convincing in their exaggerated evil, especially awful Velma with “Miss Baltimore Crabs” and “Velma’s Revenge,” and bratty Amber in “Cooties.”

The guys they push around are the dreamboats Link Larkin, aka “The Elvis of Baltimore” (Ben Jackson Walker), and host Corny Collins (Paul Schwensen), who come to see the light, not unlike the throwback teen heartthrobs (Ricky Nelson, James “Moondoggie” Darren, Fabian and Frankie Avalon).

Walker nailed Larkin’s breezy likability, smoothly dueting with Geraghty on “It Takes Two” and “Without Love.” So does Schwensen as the polished boy-next-door host, leading the clean-cut company in “The Nicest Kids in Town,” the line-dance song “The Madison” and “It’s Hairspray” at the Ultra-Clutch sponsored Miss Teenage Hairspray Pageant.

Music Director Evan Roider masterfully maintained those swinging melodies, leading a mega-cast including a youth ensemble and singers off-stage, and 24 musicians as the orchestra conductor.

Those nice kids, aka “Council Members,” are the 10 camera-ready idolized teens on the dance floor. They couldn’t be more vivacious in choreographer Jesse Robb’s peppy-retro style: Matt Dean, Olivia Windley, TJ McCarthy, Brooke Cox, Matthew Varvar, Chloe Chamberlin, McKinley Knuckle, and Audrey Cardo. Jennifer Florentino deserves mention as assistant choreographer and dance captain (and swing, along with Jack Sippel).

Same goes for the hip kids allowed to dance on the once-a-month “Negro Day,” including Jonah Taylor, Trevor “Tjay” Groce, J’Khalil and Leah Joy Ifill.

Character actor Kevin Zak amusingly filled multiple roles – Mr. Pinky, Mr. Spritzer, principal and guard while Solow played the gym teacher and matron too.

While “Hairspray” initially was a blast from the past for Baby Boomers, who lived through the social and cultural revolution of the ‘60s, accompanied by the unmistakable pop and rhythm ‘n blues music soundtrack of our lives, all generations can identify with the characters’ struggles and triumphs – especially with its empowering message of individuality and acceptance. It remains relevant today.

Director John Waters has focused on marginalized people in his subversive social satires, and his 1988 film “Hairspray” (starring Ricki Lake, Divine, Jerry Stiller, Sonny Bono and Deborah Harry) struck a universal chord to become a cult classic.

Waters had based it on his youth in Baltimore, where “The Buddy Deane Show” enthralled teenagers, not unlike Dick Clark’s “American Bandstand” and “St. Louis Hop” here on KSD-TV with host Russ Carter from 1958 – 1973. (Fun Fact: St. Louis’ local show was nationally recognized as the first racially integrated teen dance program in U.S.). Oh, how we looked up to those groovy gals doing the twist, pony and mashed potato moves.

Producer Margo Lion enlisted composer Marc Shaiman – who had scored the 1999 “South Park” film — to adapt “Hairspray,” so he and co-lyricist Scott Wittman wrote the catchy songs in the music styles of that fabled era. Writers Mark O’Donnell and Thomas Meehan tackled the real-world bullying and segregation issues with frankness, finesse and wicked humor. (FYI – Shaiman and Wittman showed up at Monday’s Muny opening!)

The show opened on Aug. 15, 2002, and ran for more than six years, closing on Jan. 4, 2009, after 2,642 performances. It won eight Tony Awards from 13 nominations in 2003 and touring productions have been around the world.  A wildly popular movie musical was released in 2007 with an all-star cast, and a live television event was broadcast in 2016. The show was performed at the Muny in 2009 and 2015.

The racial harmony aspect still resonates today, and the casting reflects a changing society, breaking down traditional images of femininity. The fact that youth activism can power social change is a potent takeaway, too, for the Muny retelling captured the optimism of a generation. The emphasis on dreamers is notable too, for one can look at this as an aspirational tale.

Mike Isaacson, executive producer and artistic director, always thinks big, and this show is no exception. Noting the Muny’s priority on community in his season opening remarks, he talked about why the special experience year in and year out is still unique.

For we dreamers come together in this summer reunion, connecting with the stories shared by people making their collaborative creative and performing efforts as personal as they can. The Muny saves space for all of us.

The Muny presents “Hairspray” from June 15 to 21 at 8:15 p.m. nightly on the outdoor stage in Forest Park. For tickets and more information, visit www.muny.org