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I NTRODUCING A CAST THAT TRULY CARES ENCORE!, WITH ITS ALL-DISNEY ENSEMBLE, IS READY TO REINFORCE LOCAL CHARITIES WITH A BIG-HEARTED BLAST OF HAIRSPRAY. SUMMER 2017 | artsLife 33 hen Hairspray fans watch the tumultuous effort to integrate the The Corny Collins Show unfold during a lavish production slated for later this summer, you can bet that musical conductor Clay Price will be marveling at yet another milestone in a similarly improbable — and unstoppable — journey. Yearning for something to enliven the after work lives of Walt Disney World cast members — that’s what all Disney employees are called — Price had a dramatic idea. Why not start a theater group in which everyone — entertainers, accountants, cashiers and custodians — could participate? After all, the Happiest Place on Earth has always been brimming with talent, much of it untapped. Ladies and gentlemen, put your hands together for Encore! Cast Performing Arts. Not that Price expected a long run. “I really didn’t think it would last,” says Price, now Encore!’s artistic director. “We did it for fun when we started. But it really just took off and has become quite the monster — as I like to jokingly call it.” Fifteen years and more than 40 performances later, that musically inclined monster storms the Walt Disney Theater with Hairspray, on July 22 and 23 at 8 p.m. and 7 p.m., respectively. Tickets start at $20. The raucous dance-style musical, which ran for more than 2,500 performances on Broadway, was ������������������ ������ �������� ���������� �������������������������� ������������������������ and directed by John Waters. NBC aired a highly rated live version last year. Encore! presented Godspell in February, and will conclude its season with a yet-to-be- �������������������� ���������� ������ ������������������ ���������� ������ �������� ���������� W PHOTO BY TIFFANY BAGWELL F E A T U R E D P E R F O R M A N C E


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