Hairspray the Musical will tour the UK

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="234" caption="Hairspray the Musical will embark on a UK tour in Spring 2010"][/caption]

Producers of the hit West End musical Hairspray have announced that they will be taking the show outside of its London Shaftesbury Theatre for the first time on tour.

Only a handful of UK cities have been revealed as stops for the Hairspray tour with more dates and future casting roles expected to be announced in due course.

Michael Ball, who ended his stint as Edna Turnblad in London last month, will return to the cast where he won the Laurence Olivier award for Best Actor in a Musical in 2008.

After details of the Hairspray tour was announced, Michael Ball claimed he knew the role of Edna Turnblad was going to play a big part in his life but never imagined just how big.

Recalling on what he describes as one of the greatest experiences of his life, Michael Ball is relishing getting back into Edna Turnblad's frocks again. However, he will not be able to play for all the dates due to his work schedule.

The dates announced so far for the Hairspray tour begin at the Cardiff Millennium Centre (March 30 - April 24 2010) and will then play at the Southampton Mayflower Theatre (May 11-29) and the Manchester Opera House (July 13-31).

Other cities the Hairspray tour will visit are Glasgow, Wolverhampton, Leeds and Liverpool.

In the meantime, Hairspray is still showing at the London Shaftesbury Theatre.

Hairspray tickets are currently still available to compare at tixdaq.com for shows until October 28 2010, with prices from £11.

Before the Hairspray tour next year, Michael Ball will embark on a solo tour for his current Greatest Hits album Past and Present from next month, which also features some songs taken from Hairspray.

Michael Ball tickets are also available to compare at tixdaq.com