Meet the amateur actresses set to strip on stage

Revealing so much in front of strangers wasn't easy for some of the cast members who volunteered to follow the "free love" spirit of the original show, but they discovered a few things about themselves and their bodies.

STEPHANIE BAILLIE

"The first thing I worried about when I signed up to do Hair was my dad coming to see the show," says 22-year-old aspiring actress Stephanie.

"My character, Sheila, is very much a leader and an instigator, and encourages the others to take their tops off in the play, but I would never do that.

"When I first saw my costume, which is basically just a scarf that I wrap around myself, I was pretty apprehensive. I'm used to walking around naked in the privacy of my own bedroom for a couple of hours while I'm waiting for my fake tan to dry."

The Telford College musical theatre graduate, who lives at home with her parents in Kirkcaldy, adds: "I've never been unhappy with my body, but at the same time I've never been comfortable showing it off. I'm the kind of person that wouldn't even go topless on the beach, but this play has made me more comfortable – to the point where I wouldn't be afraid to bare all again.

"Since I've been rehearsing for this show, I've learned to love the costumes and I've become comfortable being in character, with or without the clothes."

LISA BOWERS

Barmaid Lisa, 25, is clearly the most at ease with the revealing scenes and doesn't see what all the fuss is about.

"I'd quite happily walk around my flat naked," she says.

"I'd maybe draw the line if my flatmate had a boyfriend in, rather than offer him a cup of tea in the nude, but other than that I wouldn't have a problem with it.

"I am aware that some people may turn up in the hope of seeing some boobs on stage, but if that's all they're there for then they're going to be shocked and surprised.

"The impact of the nude scene is nothing compared to the storyline and the rest of the action that's happening on stage, so maybe they'll learn something.

"I didn't really feel the need to take my top off in the early rehearsals," continues Lisa, who lives in Leith and recently graduated in drama and dance from Manchester Metropolitan University.

"But the first time I did I could really identify with the bond – that togetherness that the tribe experience when they all get naked for the first time.

"Everyone is different and everyone has their hang-ups, but when you're all naked together you realise that a body is just a body.

"I was more apprehensive about wearing the costume, to tell you the truth, because it's just a pair of shorts and T-shirt and it leaves my belly on display, but after a while I really didn't care how I looked," added Lisa.

She's not sure what reaction to expect from her 80-year-old grandmother when she comes to see the show.

"She might be a bit shocked by it, but I doubt it," she shrugs. "After all, she's got breasts too so it's no big deal."

SARAH HENDERSON

Edinburgh University occupational therapy lecturer Sarah, 37, who lives in Stockbridge, says her work colleagues are used to seeing her on stage, but so far not like this.

"Most of them know I'm into performing arts, and a lot of them have come to my previous productions . . . so they're obviously going to come to this one," she blushes.

"The students are a different matter, though. I've told a few of them that I do amateur dramatics, and they know we're putting on a production of Hair.

"Some of them that are in the know will understand what that entails, and that there will be an element of nudity involved. For the rest of them that aren't so clued up, I've just left it at that!

"I'm not too concerned about the nude scene. Everyone looks in the mirror and wishes there was something a little different, and this play has made us realise that we're all in the same boat.

"Some of the us are worried about family members turning up, but it has to be remembered that this play was first staged 40 years ago, and a lot of the parents will actually have lived through some of the events depicted in the play, so they won't be that shocked.

"For those that are going to turn up, if all they're looking for is a flash of boobs they're going to be sorely disappointed.

"There are 25 people in the cast and 22 of them are female. The three men play the authority figures, like the father or the teacher, while there are 22 women who have the opportunity to strip off.

"As of the final dress rehearsal, there were only six or seven who had definitely agreed to do it and a few more undecided, but on the night they're under no obligation to take their clothes off."

Edinburgh Music Theatre Company's production of Hair is on at the Church Hill Theatre, on Morningside Road, until Saturday, priced at 8-12.

POWER TO SHOCK

WITH its stark portrayal of nudity and drug-taking, Hair had the power to genuinely shock when it first opened in Britain at the height of flower power.

It only received a licence to be staged in London's West End in 1968 on the day the law was relaxed to allow cautious depictions of sex, drugs and nudity.

"Hair was a play that really moved against the times when it was released in 1968," says Sarah Henderson, 37, a lecturer at Edinburgh University, who also sits on the board of directors at The Edinburgh Musical Theatre Company. Sarah performs on stage as the character Sally.

"Hair was controversial not only for the nudity but for its themes centring around the war in Vietnam, free love, drug use, the draft and the desecration of the American flag, while some of the language would also have been quite daring at the time.

"The play still resonates with today's generation, especially with the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan."

The first British production featured future stars including Elaine Paige, Floella Benjamin, Paul Nicholas, Tim Curry and Richard O'Brien.