Jennifer Hudson gets a lot of praise for her performance as Motormouth Maybelle, while Ariana Grande and Ephraim Sykes blow away audience with their portrayals of Penny and Seaweed respectively.
- December 8, 2016
AceShowbiz -
NBC just presented its latest musical production, "Hairspray Live!", that took us back to the 1960s. Supported by star-studded cast, the show got a lot of buzz from the moment of its inception to the broadcast, but who received the most praises?
Maddie Baillio, who plays Tracy Turnblad, kicked off the special with "Good Morning Baltimore" and she deserved applause for singing the song while lying down. Kristin Chenoweth, who played Amber's (Dove Cameron) mother, did what she does best, slaying a song about her not being a racist.
Ariana Grande and Ephraim Sykes made a cute couple as they played Penny Pingleton and Seaweed J. Stubbs respectively. "I am living for Penny and Seaweed!!!" one Twitter user posted. Another fan of the singer/actress wrote, "Omg seeing Ariana acting on TV is just like seeing Cat Valentine all over again aw."
Omg seeing Ariana acting on TV is just like seeing Cat Valentine all over again aw #HairsprayLive
— Anthony Gargiula (@AnthonyGargiula) December 8, 2016
Not everyone, however, loved Grande's portrayal of the character, which was portrayed by Leslie Ann Powers and Amanda Bynes in the 1988 film and the 2007 remake respectively. "Okay sorry but Arianna Grande is not a good Penny? There is so much more to this character," someone tweeted.
Okay sorry but Arianna Grande is not a good Penny? There is so much more to this character. #HairsprayLive
— Hailey Rock â�� (@sillywhimm) December 8, 2016
Harvey Fierstein playing Edna Turnblad was another highlight on the show, but it was awards-winning actress Jennifer Hudson whose performance was highly anticipated by fans. Playing Seaweed's mom, she stole the show as she sang "Big, Blonde and Beautiful".
"Was Jennifer Hudson good? I collapsed out of pure euphoria the moment she started singing and just woke back up," "Big Brother 15" winner Andy Herren tweeted. Another posted, "Is Jennifer Hudson capable of turning in a performance that's anything less than stellar? She totally lifted this show up."
Another scene stealer was the original Dynamites (Kamilah Marshall, Shayna Steele and Judine Richard) from the Broadway production. "Those are the original 'Dynamites' from the Broadway production! Fun fact! They're amazing," an excited Andy Cohen tweeted.
Those are the original "Dynamites" from the Broadway production! Fun fact! They're amazing. #HairsprayLive
— Andy Cohen (@Andy) December 8, 2016
