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Kenny Leon is the Bill Belichick of musical directors. The lifelong Lakers fan might prefer a comparison to Phil Jackson, but the New England Patriots head honcho likeness seems a bit more fitting.Basketball teams cast just a few players on the court at a time, and everyone plays both offense and defense. Football teams are larger, requiring the precise orchestration of many, and the roles are complementary yet defined.With more than 50 cast members, Hairspray Live! meanders into pigskin-sport territory. Leon, who also directed NBCs The Wiz Live!, knows how to motivate a massive team in the direction of one universal goal.I have a saying: Everybody on the bed, or everybody on the floor, he said in a phone interview.That means either youre working toward a collective effort ... or youre not working.Hairspray Live!, which premieres on Wednesday at 8 p.m. EST on NBC, features an impressive lineup of stars, including Jennifer Hudson (playing Motormouth Maybelle), Ariana Grande (Penny Pingleton), Kristin Chenoweth (Velma Von Tussle) and Derek Hough (Corny Collins), all of whom will be working as one to ensure the shows success. The broadcast, with Grease: Live (Fox) and Peter Pan Live! (NBC), is the latest in a string of musicals televised on major networks in recent years.This small-screen version incorporates talent from other successful iterations of the musical and is led by executive producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, who produced the 2007 movie. They were joined by the original songwriters, Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, and the Broadway adaptations choreographer, Jerry Mitchell. Tony award winner Harvey Fierstein, who originated the role of Edna Turnblad in the Broadway production, came aboard to reprise the role. Also joining are stage veteran Ephraim Sykes (as Seaweed J. Stubbs), Dove Cameron (Amber Von Tussle) of the Disney Channels Liv and Maddie, Garrett Clayton (Link Larkin) and rookie Maddie Baillio (Tracy Turnblad).Based on the 1988 John Waters film Hairspray, which was adapted as a Broadway production that ran from 2002 to 2009 and further popularized by the 2007 New Line Cinema movie, the storyline has been captivating audiences for nearly three decades.The engaging plot, which is set in Baltimore circa 1962, tells the story of protagonist Tracy Turnblad, whose dream is to cut a rug on the all-white Corny Collins Show, a dance program loosely based on the real-life Buddy Deane Show. After getting on the show and gaining fame from the telecast, she sets her sights on diversifying the cast of performers. In the process, she befriends an African-American dancer named Seaweed, and they work together to fight racial justice and inequality and, finally, integrate the show.This story is set in the 60s, when integration dominated discourse, but the fight for racial equality is still present in cultural conversations today.When we did the movie over a decade ago, we felt like we were doing a period piece, Zadan said. Unfortunately, with whats going on in this country right now, [this project] feels contemporary.Sykes, who recently starred in the Broadway smash Hamilton and grew up singing in church, echoed Zadans sentiment.This is something God is calling on us to do, he said in a phone interview. This is the story he has put in front of us to tell because of what is happening.Although the cast boasts many household names and notable Broadway alumni often present the heartfelt scenes, it is newcomer Baillio who will steal the show. After beating more than 1,000 hopefuls for the role of Tracy Turnblad in an open casting process, the Manhattan College sophomore from League City, Texas, is making this her first professional theater credit.Growing up, Baillio played softball, swam and tried out gymnastics, but she didnt naturally gravitate toward sports.I hated all of it, and I just wanted to sing, she said.As a result, her mother enrolled her in a local community theater as a child, and now shes leaping into the big leagues.Hairspray Live! features 18 sets and numerous costumes. Its high-flying, with upbeat choreography and music that brings out everyones smile. All of these things, while pleasant to watch, make the show challenging to perform.The actors and dancers have to move among all the sets in a matter of seconds. The farthest distance that needs to be traveled is the length of a football field. That isnt an easy sprint when just focusing on the workout -- never mind while performing wardrobe changes and then having to sing and dance.Its a little bit of theater, a little bit of film and a little bit of television, Leon said. Its the best of all of those. Its like the Super Bowl.Stamina was not so much a concern as a necessity, and it was something Leon and choreographer Mitchell drilled from the moment rehearsals began. All members of the company were encouraged to run and do cardio training on their own, in addition to practices. No one could get sick, and everyone had to be in fighting shape. Doctors and masseuses were on set to help the cast stay healthy and overcome injuries.At times, it is damn near impossible, Sykes said of the difficulty of the show. The way you learn how to do it and make it possible is by doing it over and over again.According to Mitchell, the show has been in production for a couple months, and that rehearsal time is relatively standard. The difference is the lack of a preview run. By the time a musical premieres on Broadway, the cast has performed it anywhere from 30 to 60 times in out-of-town previews. The Live! concept doesnt have that luxury.We are going to get four run-throughs, and then we have to go live, he said. So we really have to be on our game.Rehearsals were no walk in the park, either. If someone was late, missed a beat or a line, everyone (including Leon) dropped and did 20 pushups as punishment.When one person does something out of line, we all do, Leon said.Leon and Mitchell once ran the shows closing number, You Cant Stop the Beat, five times back-to-back. The way Leon tells it, Mitchell led them through the number while he was shouting in the background, I dont want to see you breathing.Its one of the hardest finales to sing and dance, Mitchell said. You are literally singing and dancing full-out for the eight minutes.With such a high-energy show, it is essential for the cast to stay nimble throughout the performance. Every morning, the crew is led through an athletic warm-up. They jog and do jumping jacks, burpees and more exercises focusing on stretching and dance.It breaks a sweat, gets you warmed up and ready for the day, Mitchell said.?You have what you have, and you cant get any players off waivers now, Leon said. Weve got to do it. Cheap Colts Jerseys . 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Cheap Colts Jerseys Authentic . -- Jimmie Johnson held off a teammate, passed a pair of Hall of Famers, and dominated once more at Dover. 0 Previous instances when a pace bowler has returned better figures than Neil Wagners 6 for 41 in a Test innings at Queen Sports Club, Bulawayo. The previous best at this venue was also by a New Zealand bowler - Shane Bonds 6 for 51 in 2005. Wagners six-for was the fourth instance of a bowler taking six wickets in a Test innings at Queens.1 Number of times a New Zealand bowler has returned better figures than Wagners in a Test against Zimbabwe. Chris Martin took 6 for 26 in Napier in 2012. Bonds 6 for 51 in 2005 is the only other instance of New Zealand pace bowler taking a six-for in a Test innings against Zimbabwe.6/106 Wagners previous innings best in Tests, against Australia in Christchurch in February this year. This is the third time Wagner has taken five or more wickets in Tests. He has taken 80 wickets at 30.51.85 The partnership between Prince Masvaure and Donald Tiripano - the second-highest stand for Zimbabwe for the ninth wicket in Tests. Paul Strang and Bryan Strang added 87 runs against Pakistan in Sheikhupura in 1996, which is the highest.3 Number of larger ninth-wicket stands than the one in Zimbabwes innings when a team has lost eight wickets for a score of less than 100. Tiripano joined Masvaure when Zimbabwe were 72 for 8. It is the highest such partnership since Roger Binny and Madan Lal added 117 runs against West Indies in Kanpur in 1983 after India were 90 for 8.49* Runs scored by Donald Tiripano, the hhighest by a Zimbabwe batsman at No.dddddddddddd 10 or 11 in Tests. Bryan Strangs 42 against Pakistan in Sheikhupura in 1996 was the previous best.6 Instances when Zimbabwe have been dismissed for a score lower than the 164 they made in this innings in Tests by New Zealand. Their lowest all-out total at home against New Zealand is 59, which came in Harare in 2005.4 Wickets lost by Zimbabwe on the score of 72, their worst four-wicket collapse in a Test innings. Their previous worst was also against New Zealand in Harare in 2005, when they slid from 9/0 to 11/4 in their first innings.2009 The last time two players from opposing teams made their debut as captains in the same Test, before Graeme Cremer and Kane Williamson in this Test. West Indies Floyd Reifer and Bangladeshs Mashrafe Mortaza captained their respective teams for the first time in their career in St Vincent on that occasion. Overall this was the 24th such instance since (and not including) the first ever Test.126 Internationals played by Chamu Chibhabha - 96 ODIs and 30 T20Is - before making his Test debut, in this match. This is the second-most international matches played by anyone before making his Test debut. Rohit Sharma had played 144 international games before making his debut in Tests, against West Indies in Kolkata in 2013-