THE ESSENTIAL A&E PICKS FOR APR 6 - 12 

• Dreamstime

Easter fun
It does no disrespect to the religious significance of Easter weekend to note that it's also a time when parents are looking for fun activities for the whole family. Utah boasts plenty such events from one end of the state to the other, allowing for plenty of opportunities to celebrate secularly.

Multiple municipalities host local Easter-egg hunts, most of them on Saturday, April 8. Draper's event kicks off at Galena Park (12500 S. Vista Station Blvd.) at 10 a.m., with staggered starting times for different age groups, all free for children under the age of 12; Easter Bunny photos will accompany the event. Cottonwood Heights invites guests to Butler Park (7500 S. 7200 East) beginning at 9 a.m. for food trucks, balloon artists, an Easter bunny visit and age-grouped egg-hunting starting at 10 a.m., all free to the public. West Jordan starts its free egg hunt at 9 a.m. at the Youth Soccer Complex (7965 S. 4000 West), with candy and special prizes for those who find the golden eggs. North Salt Lake's event at Hatch Park (50 W. Center St.) kicks off at 9 a.m. with a hunt for filled eggs including candy, toys and prize tickets. Additional events can be found in multiple other towns, so check your location's website for more options.

If you're looking to add a little extra to your egg hunts, check out the Easter Eggstreme at Thanksgiving Point (3003 N. Thanksgiving Way, Lehi), which includes more games and springtime activities. Or visit Gardner Village (1100 S. 7800 West, West Jordan) for the annual Easter Bunny breakfast and other Easter "hoppenings." (Scott Renshaw)

Broadway at the Eccles: Hairspray
Filmmaker John Waters has always been a provocateur, but there was something particularly cheeky about using candy-colored early-1960s nostalgia as the delivery system for his 1988 film Hairspray. From the clear-eyed look at the era's racial segregation to the casting of Waters' muse Divine as the mother of heroine Tracy Turnblad, the story was a bracing bit of progressivism in a retro package. And when it was turned into a musical in 2003, the songs by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman added even more sparkle to its messages of inclusion—which somehow feel even more relevant as the show celebrates its 20th anniversary.

The current touring production hits town, staged once again by original Broadway director Jack O'Brien and choreographer Jerry Mitchell. It still follows the adventures of plus-size 16-year-old Baltimore resident Tracy, whose circa-1962 dream of dancing on the popular local Corny Collins program collides with the realization that her Black friends aren't allowed on the show except for the segregated "Negro Day." Set to great songs like "Good Morning Baltimore," "I Can Hear the Bells" and "You Can't Stop the Beat," the narrative tracks Tracy's evolution from a girl longing to fit in and be popular, to someone who discovers a more important calling in helping to create justice.

Hairspray runs at the Eccles Theater (131 S. Main St.) April 11 – 16 for seven performances only: April 11-13 at 7:30 p.m.; April 14 at 8 p.m.; April 15 at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.; and April 16 at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $79 - $119; visit arttix.org to purchase tickets and for additional event information. (SR)

• Joseph Branca

Salt Lake Acting Company: Yoga Play
In Dipika Guha's 2017 satirical work Yoga Play, a successful yoga apparel company gets caught up in a scandal involving sweatshop labor, necessitating the arrival of a new CEO to pull the company out of its public-relations tailspin. According to the playwright in a video interview for the premiere production, "I had been thinking about California and the 'quest for peace' ... and the desire for both authenticity and wealth. And yoga seemed to be at the nexus of that. ... I hope there's a space to look at appropriation, to both question it and laugh at it."

For Penelope Caywood, who directs Salt Lake Acting Company's Utah-premiere production of Yoga Play, the play offers a chance to investigate "the intersections between spirituality, capitalism, and self-improvement. By using wit and humor to explore a serious topic, the play creates a space for audiences to reflect on the ways that corporations and businesses can take something as deeply personal and spiritual as yoga and turn it into a commodity. ... By examining how these ideas can become intertwined, the play forces us to confront our own understanding of what it means to be truly 'well' or 'enlightened.'"

Yoga Play runs at Salt Lake Acting Company (168 W. 500 North) April 12 – May 6, with performances Wednesday – Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m. & 6 p.m., plus select additional dates and times, and special accessibility performances throughout the run. Tickets are $34 - $44; visit saltlakeactingcompany.org for tickets and additional event information. (SR)