The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History has acquired four items from the original Broadway mounting of “Hair.” The artifacts were donated within the last year and will be featured in the “Entertainment Nation” exhibit in the museum’s Hall of American Culture.
The items include sheet music for the act-one song “Where Do I Go,” handwritten by the musical’s composer, Galt MacDermot, and an original poster from the production. Two costume pieces also were donated: a red shirt worn by Gerome Ragni as the character Berger and a tie-dye vest (designed by Tony Award nominee Nancy Potts) worn by Shelley Plimpton in the role of Crissy.
The “Entertainment Nation” exhibit not only chronicles the history of entertainment in the United States, but also its reflection of and impact on American culture. When “Hair” opened on Broadway on April 29, 1968 at the Biltmore Theatre (now renamed Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, the Broadway home of Manhattan Theatre Club), the rock musical held up a mirror to the counterculture movement, growing anti-war sentiment and sexual revolution of the decade. The musical, which features a book and lyrics by Gerome Ragni and James Rado (both of whom performed in the show) and music by MacDermot, closed in 1972 after 1,750 performances. The Best Musical Tony Award nominee received subsequent Main Stem mountings in 1977, 2009 and 2011.
The exact date of the addition of the “Hair” pieces to the exhibit will be announced.
