Okay, so now I'm wondering: I must be the only person who writes about sexuality who has never seen Hairspray. But I was just talking to a theater friend who said, "you know, actually, the character that Travolta plays was written to be a straight woman in an nuclear family. It just happens that she was initially played by Divine. Really it's a film about integration and racism, though a campy one, and about a fat girl who wants to dance."

So here's my question, being ignorant of theater and film as I am: Was Hairspray initially written with gay culture and gay characters in mind? Was Divine cast mainly because she could play a straight woman and a straight man? Or was the casting of Divine intended to parody straight men and women? Is it possible that this current film adaptation is trying to resist the gay-culture adoption of the film?

I'd love to see an extended discussion of the original "intent" of Hairspray, its evolution as a piece of theater and film, and how the current film adaptation fits into its history and its development.

And really, I'm raising these questions because I'm quite curious and know very little!

...because public space really matters!

Elizabeth