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Robert Bianco

TV tonight: 'Hairspray Live,' 'Lethal Weapon'

Robert Bianco, USA TODAY
Garrett Clayton as Link Larkin, Maddie Baillio as Tracy Turnblad, Derek Hough as Corny Collins, Harvey Fierstein as Edna Turnblad, Ephraim Sykes as Seaweed J. Stubbs, Ariana Grande as Penny Pingleton in NBC's 'Hairspray Live.'

Burn Notice’s Jeffrey Donovan returns to TV as a small-time fortune-telling con man who suddenly sees the light. Unfortunately, enlightenment doesn't sit well with the head of the clan that runs Los Angeles’s psychic storefront empire, a matriarch played by Isabella Rossellini.

Christmas is coming, bringing with it painful memories for Riggs of holidays spent with his late wife. Not that Murtaugh is much happier. He’s dealing with a neighbor’s excessive decorations.

Craig Zadan and Neil Meron follow their best  live musical, The Wiz, with a production that holds promise of being even better. All the pieces seem to be in place. The show itself is strong, with a superbly catchy score from Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman and an ever-more timely story about embracing and celebrating our differences. The behind-the-scenes team is led by two experienced directors: Tony winner Kenny Leon and Grease Live’s Alex Rudzinski. And the cast — which includes Jennifer Hudson, Ariana Grande, Kristin Chenoweth and Martin Short — looks hard to beat. Best of all, perhaps, this new version gives original Broadway star Harvey Fierstein a chance to preserve his iconic Broadway performance, which is reason enough to support another production. Sure, it could all still go Sound of Music south, by why not opt for optimism?

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