Street art to stage: KC fashion designer styles iconic Jim Crow-era musical comedy without missing a beat

Designing for theater gives Whitney Manney the opportunity to be as big and loud as she wants, the street bespoke creator said. A new musical production of “Hairspray” puts Manney’s bold aesthetic through a new lens — and alongside a timely story of acceptance, diversity, and the power of music.

“There is no such thing as too much sparkle or too much color in theater,” said Manney, who was tapped to curate looks for 29 cast members for the show, running through Feb. 23 at The White Theatre in Overland Park.

Whitney Manney, WHITNEYMANNEY (WM)

“As a ‘more is more’ girl, it’s given me a new platform to show up artistically without worrying about the commercial aspect of my business,” continued the street art fashion designer behind the WHITNEYMANNEY (WM) brand. “Working with the ‘theater kids’ has been so fun and I’ve been learning a lot from them. It’s important as an artspreneur to get out of the studio every now and then to actually engage with art.”

“Hairspray” is a long-running musical set in 1960s Baltimore — adapted from the John Waters film of the same name — telling the story of teenager Tracy Turnblad as she pursues her dream of dancing on “The Corny Collins Show” and advocates for racial integration.

Click here for tickets to “Hairspray,” Olivia Hollan, David Thompson, Guy Gardner, Liz Golson, Brietta Goodman, Mike Saxton, and Zane Champie.

Tackling costuming for the show — a co-production between The Black Repertory Theatre and The White Theatre at The J — required Manney to seamlessly blend vintage inspiration with contemporary flair to transport audiences back to the 1960s.

“My philosophy for WM is to ‘get in where you fit in and everywhere in between,’ meaning I want to create a world that WM can experiment, show up and show out in any medium I’m interested in,” she said. “I can’t begin to describe how incredible it feels to see your work coming to life on a human being. Also, how else am I going to hit my EGOT status?”

Olivia Hollan and Guy Gardner, as Tracy and Edna Turnblad, portray two of the iconic lead characters in “Hairspray” at The White Theatre in Overland Park; photo by Whitney Manney

Balancing the WM style and the standard set for the period-piece musical wasn’t as difficult as some might imagine, said Manney, whose high-profile work in fashion and textiles has ranged from collaborations with the Kansas City Royals and Wandering Bud to appearances on TV’s “Bel Air” and “RuPaul’s Drag Race.”

A wig mimicking the style of women’s hair in the 1960s rests back stage at “Hairspray” amid other costuming elements curated by Whitney Manney; photo by Whitney Manney

“While WM is street bespoke, I’m still heavily inspired by vintage fashion, art and patterns,” she said. “Fashion history is my jam so I had so much fun during the research process. It’s important to remember it’s not a WM production, this is an existing Tony Award winning show. I’m here to show respect and make sure my cast looks amazing.”

Manney found ways to get creative with pattern mixing, colors, and accessories, she said.

“The thrift store runs were pretty iconic; my best score was a pair of Stuart Weitzman pumps in Barbie pink for $6,” Manney recalled. “The biggest limitation for any production job is budget, I had 29 people to dress. You just gotta be creative, but WM was born out of making something outta nothing … so I’m the perfect designer for these kind of projects. I sourced a lot of vintage inspired brands that I knew would be great for the show from ThredUp to save money, made boas out of tulle instead of feathers, and stitched up a whole lot of glamorous caftans.”

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A moment of conflict between social classes and races depicted in “Hairspray”; photo by Whitney Manney

Behind the look

“‘Hairspray’ is visually stimulating so the colors, patterns, and textures have to be on point,” said Manney. “I also needed to be as historically accurate as possible while taking a critical look at each character.”

“This is set during the ’60s, so I wanted to make sure the items I sourced and stitched made sense with the time. The show is literally about segregation and Jim Crow era practices,” she added. “The ‘Nicest Kids’ are literally the popular White kids of Patterson Park High, so their styling needed to be on trend for the time, but not flamboyant and proper. I made sure to keep them in more traditional patterns, the girls in softer colors and more feminine shapes to help visually set the tone vs. the ‘Detention Kids’ being in more vibrant tones, experimenting with color mixing, and dressing with more personality.”

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Although she’d not previously seen “Hairspray” before joining the project, Manney delved deep into research: watching every version she could find, she said.

“I mainly focused on the John Waters original, the 2007 movie based on the Broadway musical, and a NBC Live musical version,” Manney recalled. “I wanted to see what was consistent between all formats, the differences, and of course how the visuals have changed over time. There’s certain things I liked about each version, but the consistent element is Tracy Turnblad being a challenger with great comedic timing.”

“I think the way John Waters decided to tell a true and heavy story with a bit of irony, irreverence, and kitsch is what makes an artist great,” she added. “That spirit still runs true in the Broadway iterations of the production.”

Manney’s hairspray opportunity arose after a successful experience designing costumes for a previous production of “Hip Hop Cinderella” at the Black Repertory Theatre of KC.

“Theater was the last genre I needed to get experience in as a designer, it’s been incredible but so different than runway or other production work,” she said. “I’m still green in the stage world but I’m quickly learning on the job. Musicals are the perfect big and bright stage for the WM vision.”

This spring or summer, Manney is planning an open studio event for WM, as the business continues to evolve — breaking into art licensing and fine-tuning its e-commerce presence — while maintaining its authentic connection to Kansas City.

“My new space will be the long-term home of WM and I’m hoping to host more events and build community in my new neighborhood,” she said.