A new age of Aquarius

It's finally Hair! (I know, that was pretty lame. But I couldn't resist.)

The Broadway revival of the American Tribal Love Rock Musical begins previews tonight at the Hirschfeld Theatre, on the heels of a widely praised production in Central Park last summer. Opening night is March 31.

Earlier in the week, the cast performed for group ticket brokers. You can watch "Aquarius" here. You can also listen to four songs from the show: "Aquarius," "Hair," "Let the Sunshine In" and "Good Morning Starshine."

Even though the musical is more than 40 years old and its hippy, trippy, anti-Vietnam War, free love message might seem a little dated, the producers are clearly doing their best to tap into the current zeitgeist:

"Just in time to usher in the dawning of a new age in America, the Public Theater's joyous production of Hair comes to Broadway. A celebration of life, a love letter to freedom, and a passionate cry for hope and change, Hair features some of the greatest songs ever written for the stage."

Hope and change? That's so 2008!

And maybe some of the greatest songs ever written for the stage is a bit of hyperbole but I do love the score by Gerome Ragni, James Rado and Galt MacDermot. I don't know the lyrics to many songs by heart but I probably know more of the words to the songs in Hair than any other musical:

When the moon is in the seventh house
and Jupiter aligns with Mars
then peace will guide the planets
and love will steer the stars.
This is the dawning of the Age of Aquarius.

I wrote that from memory, honest. Singing along from the audience is frowned upon, right? No, I don't have my ticket yet but hope is what it's all about.