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Hairspray: A Screenplay
A feel-good fable and an enduring critique of conformity told with true John Waters flair.
Tracy Turnblad, a spunky, full-figured Baltimore teen, wants nothing more than to be a featured dancer on The Corny Collins Show. So when she gets chosen to be on the air, it seems like all her dreams are about to come true. But when she and some of the Black cast of the show try to integrate the segregated dancing, things take on a life of their own. A sweet, hopeful parable about the dangers of conformity and segregation, Hairspray is perhaps the one optimistic entry in John Waters’ shocking and delightfully deranged oeuvre. Both a clear-eyed social critique and a celebration of the dizzying aesthetics of Baltimore in the early 1960s, this is another, softer side to the essential John Waters.
Tracy Turnblad, a spunky, full-figured Baltimore teen, wants nothing more than to be a featured dancer on The Corny Collins Show. So when she gets chosen to be on the air, it seems like all her dreams are about to come true. But when she and some of the Black cast of the show try to integrate the segregated dancing, things take on a life of their own. A sweet, hopeful parable about the dangers of conformity and segregation, Hairspray is perhaps the one optimistic entry in John Waters’ shocking and delightfully deranged oeuvre. Both a clear-eyed social critique and a celebration of the dizzying aesthetics of Baltimore in the early 1960s, this is another, softer side to the essential John Waters.
- GenresFiction
107 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 21, 2025
About the author
John Waters
101 books1,534 followersJohn Samuel Waters, Jr. is an American filmmaker, actor, writer, personality, visual artist and art collector, who rose to fame in the early 1970s for his transgressive cult films: Pink Flamingos and Hairspray. He is recognizable by his pencil-thin moustache.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
October 5, 2025
Hairspray: A Screenplay
Thanks to Macmillan Audio, the amazing John Waters (author), and Libro.fm for providing a free advance audiobook of Hairspray: A Screenplay expertly read by John Waters himself. Getting free stuff does not influence my reviews in any way.
Tracy, a plus-size teenager in Baltimore, finds her dreams coming true when she gets chosen to be a dancer on The Corny Collins Show. But things spiral out of control when she and some of her black friends try to integrate the segregated dancing. If you know the 1988 movie and the Broadway musical, you know the story. But this screenplay includes scenes and dialogue often deleted or omitted in a lot of productions, although Hairspray is way more mainstream and proper than Waters’ earlier campy, racy films.
This audiobook is being released October 21, as well as a few more of his cult favorites (those campy, racy ones).
5 stars; and Waters with his theatrical narration is perfect!
Thanks to Macmillan Audio, the amazing John Waters (author), and Libro.fm for providing a free advance audiobook of Hairspray: A Screenplay expertly read by John Waters himself. Getting free stuff does not influence my reviews in any way.
Tracy, a plus-size teenager in Baltimore, finds her dreams coming true when she gets chosen to be a dancer on The Corny Collins Show. But things spiral out of control when she and some of her black friends try to integrate the segregated dancing. If you know the 1988 movie and the Broadway musical, you know the story. But this screenplay includes scenes and dialogue often deleted or omitted in a lot of productions, although Hairspray is way more mainstream and proper than Waters’ earlier campy, racy films.
This audiobook is being released October 21, as well as a few more of his cult favorites (those campy, racy ones).
5 stars; and Waters with his theatrical narration is perfect!
March 14, 2026
I love the hairspray (1988) film and it was nice to get this script book and read all the scenes that weren't included in the film.
I highly recommend everyone who's a fan of this film read this book.
I highly recommend everyone who's a fan of this film read this book.
February 5, 2026
Reading the script was just as fun as watching the movie. The topic still as relevant as ever with protesting injustice and promoting equality just with all the John Waters' humor.
February 27, 2026
Love the OG movie, musicals, so nice to read it too. Flew through it. Get your cockroach revenge dress ready!
June 13, 2026
My first John Waters movie, so I had to read the screenplay first in my JW book-a-thon for Pride Month!
June 24, 2026
tracy turnblad icon status
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews