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Spanish production of HAIR reported to authorities due to smoking on stage

13/02/2011
The Health Public Agency of Barcelona has warned the producers of the show that they will be fined if they don´t comply with the recent smoking ban.

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This is the first conflict in Spain regarding the recent smoking ban and theatre performances with smoking scenes . Surprisingly and, on the contrary of what happens in other countries, the smoking ban in Spain does not consider any exception.

Last Friday, 11 February, the producers of HAIR, running at Barcelona´s Teatre Apolo, received a warning from the Health Public Agency of Barcelona due to the complaint of an audience member. They have been told that if they don´t eliminate the ignite cigarettes on the stage, they will be fined.

A spokesperson from the Ministry of Health in Spain said to Efe Agency in November 2010 that there is no point for ambiguity in this case; an actor smoking inside a theatre is undoubtedly illegal: "Firstly, because the law bans smoking in closed areas, as theatre are, and secondly, because the theatre is also the workplace for the actors and the technical crew, so the law of the prohibition of smoking in workplaces is being broken."

According to the executive producer of HAIR, Roger Peña, they are not breaking the law: "to avoid this kind of situation I decided to use herbal cigarettes, not tobacco. The actors don´t smoke tobacco on stage".

The story of HAIR follows a group of hippies of the 60´s and of course smoking is linked to these characters. Regarding the complaint, Roger Peña says that it is "deplorable that a man could be offended due to performers smoking on the stage in a show like HAIR".

HAIR has been hugely successful both in New York and London recently. In those cities the law has rational exceptions. New York City falls under a statewide smoking ban in place since 2003, but actors may smoke herbal cigarettes on stage. If they want to use the real deal, the production has to apply for a waiver from the city. In London the smoking ban began on 1st July 2007 but English theatres have an exemption which means that real cigarettes can be smoked “if artistic integrity makes it appropriate”. So in both cities, HAIR hippies were able to smoke without being in conflict with the law.

It is obvious then that there is an empty space in the Spanish law, that doesn´t consider any artistic exception. Roger Peña also claims for it: "If it was forbidden to smoke while acting in cinema, there would never be scenes as the Humphrey Bogart ones. They are censuring the cinema, the authors... There are a lot of different shows in Spain where performers smoke, as ‘Quadern Gris’ where Josep Pla smokes and speaks about how important it is for him smoking; or ‘Un tranvía llamado deseo’ (A Streetcar named Desire) in Madrid, where all the cast smokes... This is an absurd censure. One thing is health, but another is this censure that bring us all back to the Franco era."

HAIR LOVE & ROCK MUSICAL opened at Barcelona´s Teatre Apolo on 22 December 2010 directed by Daniel Anglès with a cast led by Joan Vázquez, Jordi Coll and Julia Möller. On the 13th February at 12pm the show organised a FlashLove; an event in which everybody was invited to show their love by going to the Teatre Apolo with their partner and kissing each other to celebrate St. Valentine´s Day. This call had a huge success, congregating hundreds of people in front of the theatre.

HAIR LOVE & ROCK MUSICAL will begin a Spanish Tour at Valencia´s Teatro Olympia from 12th May.

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