''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' is a

rock musical A rock musical is a musical theatre work with rock music. The genre of rock musical may overlap somewhat with album musicals, concept albums and song cycles, as they sometimes tell a story through the rock music, and some album musicals and concep ...

with music and lyrics by

Stephen Trask Stephen Trask (born Stephen R. Schwartz; born August 29, 1966) is an American musician and composer who graduated from Wesleyan University. He was the music director and house band member at the New York City club Squeezebox, where they performe ...

and a book by

John Cameron Mitchell John Cameron Mitchell (born April 21, 1963) is an American actor, playwright, screenwriter, singer, songwriter, producer and director. He is known as the writer, director and star of the 2001 film ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch (film), Hedwig and t ...

. The musical follows Hedwig Robinson, a

genderqueer Non-binary or genderqueer gender identities are those that are outside the male/female gender binary. Non-binary identities often fall under the transgender umbrella since non-binary people typically identify with a gender that is differ ...

East German East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from its formation on 7 October 1949 until its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on 3 October 1990. Until 1989, it was generally vie ...

singer of a fictional

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

band. The story draws on Mitchell's life as the child of a U.S. Army major general who once commanded the U.S. sector of occupied

West Berlin West Berlin ( or , ) was a political enclave which comprised the western part of Berlin from 1948 until 1990, during the Cold War. Although West Berlin lacked any sovereignty and was under military occupation until German reunification in 1 ...

. The character of Hedwig was inspired by a German divorced U.S. Army wife who was Mitchell's family

babysitter Babysitting is temporarily caring for a child. Babysitting can be a paid job for all ages; however, it is best known as a temporary activity for early teenagers who are not yet eligible for employment in the general economy. It provides auto ...

and moonlighted as a

sex worker A sex worker is a person who provides sex work, either on a regular or occasional basis. The term is used in reference to those who work in all areas of the sex industry.Oxford English Dictionary, "sex worker" According to one view, sex work is ...

at her trailer park home in

Junction City, Kansas Junction City is a city in and the county seat of Geary County, Kansas, Geary County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 22,932. Fort Riley, a major United States Army, U.S. ...

. The music is steeped in the androgynous 1970s

glam rock Glam rock is a style of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s and was primarily defined by the flamboyant clothing, makeup, and hairstyles of its musicians, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists d ...

style of

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...

(who co-produced the

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

production of the show), as well as the work of

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...

and early

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

performers

Lou Reed Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician and songwriter. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. Althoug ...

and

Iggy Pop James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter, actor and radio broadcaster. He was the vocalist and lyricist of proto-punk band the Stooges, who were formed in 1 ...

. The musical opened

off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

in 1998, and won the

Obie Award The Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards given since 1956 by ''The Village Voice'' newspaper to theater artists and groups involved in off-Broadway and off-off-Broadway productions in New York City. Starting just after th ...

and

Outer Critics Circle Award The Outer Critics Circle Awards are presented annually for theatrical achievements both on Broadway and Off-Broadway. They are presented by the Outer Critics Circle (OCC), the official organization of New York theater writers for out-of-town news ...

for Best Off-Broadway Musical. The production ran for two years, and was remounted with various casts by the original creative team in other US cities. Following a West End production in 2000, the musical was produced throughout the world in hundreds of stage productions. The show's first Broadway incarnation, opening April 2014 at the Belasco Theatre, won Best Revival of a Musical at the 68th Tony Awards. The Broadway closing in September 2015 was followed by a U.S. national tour, launching at San Francisco's Golden Gate Theatre in October 2016 and ending at the

Kennedy Center The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, commonly known as the Kennedy Center, is the national cultural center of the United States, located on the eastern bank of the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. Opened on September 8, ...

in July 2017.

History

The character of Hedwig was originally a supporting character in the piece. She was loosely inspired by a German female babysitter/prostitute who worked for Mitchell's family when he was a teenager in Junction City, Kansas. The character of Tommy, originally conceived as the main character, was based on Mitchell himself: both were gay, the child of an army general, deeply Roman Catholic, and fascinated with mythology. Hedwig became the story's protagonist when Trask encouraged Mitchell to showcase their earliest material in 1994 at NYC's drag-punk club Squeezebox, where Trask headed the house band and Mitchell's boyfriend, Jack Steeb, played bass. They agreed the piece should be developed through band gigs in clubs rather than in a theater setting in order to preserve a rock energy. Mitchell was deeply influenced by Squeezebox's roster of drag performers who performed rock covers. The setlists of Hedwig's first gigs included many covers with lyrics rewritten by Mitchell to tell Hedwig's story:

Fleetwood Mac Fleetwood Mac are a British-American Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1967 by the singer and guitarist Peter Green (musician), Peter Green. Green named the band by combining the surnames of the drummer, Mick Fleetwood, and the bassis ...

's "Oh Well";

Television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

's "See No Evil";

Wreckless Eric Eric Goulden (born 18 May 1954), known as Wreckless Eric, is an English rock music, rock and New wave music, new wave singer-songwriter, best known for his 1977 single "Whole Wide World (song), Whole Wide World" on Stiff Records. More than two d ...

's "Whole Wide World";

Yoko Ono Yoko Ono (, usually spelled in katakana as ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking. Ono grew up in Tokyo and moved to New York ...

's " Death of Samantha"; Pere Ubu's "Non-Alignment Pact";

Cher Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Goddess of Pop", she is known for her Androgyny, androgynous contralto voice, Music an ...

's "Half Breed";

's "Boys Keep Swinging"; Mott the Hoople's "All the Young Dudes"; and the Velvet Underground's "Femme Fatale." A German glam rendition of

Debby Boone Deborah Anne Boone (born September 22, 1956) is an American singer, author, and actress. She is best known for her 1977 hit, " You Light Up My Life", which spent ten weeks at No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and led to her winning the G ...

's " You Light Up My Life" once served as the musical's finale. Mitchell's second gig was as fill-in host at Squeezebox on a bill featuring singer Deborah Harry of Blondie. It was for this occasion that Mike Potter first designed Hedwig's trademark wig, which was initially constructed from toilet paper rolls wrapped with synthetic blond hair. Mitchell, Trask, and the band Cheater (Jack Steeb, Chris Wielding, Dave McKinley, and Scott Bilbrey) continued to workshop material at venues such as Fez Nightclub and Westbeth Theater Center for four years before premiering the completed musical Off-Broadway in 1998. Mitchell, who himself came out as non-binary in 2022, has explained that Hedwig is not a

trans woman A trans woman or transgender woman is a woman who was assigned male at birth. Trans women have a female gender identity and may experience gender dysphoria (distress brought upon by the discrepancy between a person's gender identity and their ...

, but a

character. "She's more than a woman or a man," he has said. "She's a gender of one and that is accidentally so beautiful." He also stated that, while Hedwig is meant to be a queer voice, she is not meant to be specifically transgender: " he sex change operation isnot a choice. Hedwig doesn't speak for any trans community, because she was... mutilated."

Synopsis

The concept of the stage production is that the audience is watching genderqueer rock singer Hedwig Robinson's musical act as she follows rockstar Tommy Gnosis' (much more successful) tour around the country. Occasionally Hedwig opens a door onstage to listen to Gnosis's concert, which is playing in an adjoining venue. Gnosis is recovering from an incident that nearly ruined his career, having crashed his car into a school bus while high and receiving oral sex from none other than Hedwig. Capitalizing on her notoriety from the incident, Hedwig determines to tell the audience her story ("Tear Me Down"). She is aided and hindered by her assistant, back-up singer and husband, Yitzhak. A Jewish

drag queen A drag queen is a person, usually male, who uses Drag (entertainment), drag clothing and makeup to imitate and often exaggerate Femininity, female gender signifiers and gender roles for entertainment purposes. Historically, drag queens have ...

from

Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

, Yitzhak has an unhealthy, codependent relationship with Hedwig. Hedwig verbally abuses him throughout the evening, and it becomes clear that she is threatened by his natural talent, which eclipses her own. She describes how she agreed to marry him only after extracting a promise from him to never perform as a woman again, and he bitterly resents her treatment of him. (To further the musical's theme of blurred gender lines, Yitzhak is often played by a female actor.) Hedwig tells her life story, which began when she was Hansel Schmidt, a "slip of a girlyboy" growing up in

East Berlin East Berlin (; ) was the partially recognised capital city, capital of East Germany (GDR) from 1949 to 1990. From 1945, it was the Allied occupation zones in Germany, Soviet occupation sector of Berlin. The American, British, and French se ...

. Raised by an emotionally distant single mother after her father, an American soldier, abandoned the family, Hansel takes solace in her love of western rock music. She becomes fascinated with a story called "The Origin of Love", based on

Aristophanes Aristophanes (; ; ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek Ancient Greek comedy, comic playwright from Classical Athens, Athens. He wrote in total forty plays, of which eleven survive virtually complete today. The majority of his surviving play ...

speech in '' Plato's Symposium''. It explains that three sexes of human beings once existed: "children of the Sun" (man and man attached), "children of the Earth" (woman and woman attached), and "children of the Moon" (man and woman attached). Each were once round, two-headed, four-armed, and four-legged beings. Angry gods split these early humans in two, leaving the separated people with a lifelong yearning for their other half. Hansel is determined to search for her other half, but is convinced she will have to travel to the West to do so. This becomes possible when, in her 20s, she meets Luther Robinson, an American soldier ("Sugar Daddy") who convinces her to begin dressing in drag. Luther falls in love with Hansel and the two decide to marry. This plan will allow Hansel to leave communist

East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

for the capitalist West. Hansel's mother, Hedwig, gives Hansel her name and passport and finds a doctor to perform a genital reassignment surgery. However, the operation is botched, and Hansel's surgically constructed vagina heals closed, leaving Hedwig with a dysfunctional one-inch mound of flesh between her legs, "with a scar running down it like a sideways grimace on an eyeless face" ("Angry Inch"). Hedwig goes to live in

, as Luther's wife. On their first wedding anniversary, Luther leaves Hedwig for a man. That same day, it is announced that the

Berlin Wall The Berlin Wall (, ) was a guarded concrete Separation barrier, barrier that encircled West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, separating it from East Berlin and the East Germany, German Democratic Republic (GDR; East Germany). Construction of the B ...

has fallen and

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

will reunite, meaning Hedwig's sacrifice was for nothing. Hedwig recovers from the separation by creating a more glamorous, feminine identity for herself ("Wig in a Box") and forming a rock band she calls The Angry Inch. Hedwig befriends the brother of a child she babysits, shy and misunderstood Christian teenager Tommy Speck, who is fascinated by a song she writes with him in mind ("Wicked Little Town"). They collaborate on songs and begin a relationship. Their songs are a success, and Hedwig gives him the stage name ''Tommy

Gnosis Gnosis is the common Greek noun for knowledge ( γνῶσις, ''gnōsis'', f.). The term was used among various Hellenistic religions and philosophies in the Greco-Roman world. It is best known for its implication within Gnosticism, where ...

''. Hedwig believes that Tommy is her soulmate and that she cannot be whole without him, but he is disgusted when he discovers her "inch" and abandons her ("The Long Grift"). He goes on to become a wildly successful rock star with the songs Hedwig wrote alone and with him. The "internationally ignored" Hedwig and her band the Angry Inch are forced to support themselves by playing coffee bars and dives. Hedwig grows more erratic and unstable as the evening progresses, until she finally breaks down, stripping off her wig, dress, and make-up, forcing Yitzhak to step forward and sing ("Hedwig's Lament"/"Exquisite Corpse"). At the height of her breakdown, she seems to transform into Tommy Gnosis, who both begs for and offers forgiveness in a reprise of the song she wrote for him ("Wicked Little Town (Reprise)"). Hedwig, out of costume, finds acceptance within herself, giving her wig to Yitzhak. At peace, Hedwig departs the stage as Yitzhak takes over her final song, dressed fabulously in drag ("Midnight Radio").

Songs

Even though Yitzhak sings backup on almost all numbers in the show, the songs below that are labeled with ''Hedwig with Yitzhak'' are ones where he has notable solo lines. The show is performed without an intermission. * " Tear Me Down" – Hedwig with Yitzhak * "

The Origin of Love ''The Origin of Love'' is the third studio album released by British singer-songwriter Mika. The album was released in France on 17 September 2012, and in the United Kingdom on 8 October 2012, via Casablanca Records and Barclay Records res ...

" – Hedwig * " Sugar Daddy" – Hedwig with Yitzhak * " Angry Inch" – Hedwig * " Wig in a Box" – Hedwig * " Wicked Little Town" – Hedwig * " The Long Grift" – Yitzhak/Skszp ‡ * " Hedwig's Lament" – Hedwig * " Exquisite Corpse" – Hedwig with Yitzhak * " Wicked Little Town (Reprise)" – Tommy § * " Midnight Radio" – Hedwig ‡ In the original off-Broadway production, this song was sung by the musical director Skszp; in the 2014 Broadway revival, Yitzhak sings the song instead. § This song is performed by the character Tommy Gnosis, who is meant to be portrayed by the same actor as Hedwig. A song performed by Yitzhak and the band, "Random Number Generation" was included on the Off-Broadway Cast Album, but does not appear in the score. The Broadway production had the song prepared to play in case Hedwig had to leave the stage, along with "Freaks", a song from the movie. Lena Hall performed the song at her final show during the sound check. In the 2014 Broadway Revival, a small subplot was added to the script, and a small number was added to support it. Parodying ''

The Hurt Locker ''The Hurt Locker'' is a 2008 American war action thriller film directed by Kathryn Bigelow and written by Mark Boal. It stars Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty, Christian Camargo, Ralph Fiennes, David Morse, and Guy Pearce. T ...

'' Hedwig explains that a musical version of the story only ran for a single night before closing during intermission, and that she has convinced a producer to let her perform in what would otherwise be an empty stage. At one point Hedwig finds the theme for a song from the show, "When Love Explodes" and lets Yitzhak sing it, but stops him before he can sing the last note (the one exception being Lena Hall's final night). Yitzhak sings the entire song (including a missing verse) in the Revival Cast Album.

Casts and characters

Notable Replacements

;Off-Broadway (1998–2000) *Hedwig:

Michael Cerveris Michael Cerveris Jr. (born November 6, 1960) is an American actor, singer, and guitarist. He has performed in many stage musicals and plays, including several Stephen Sondheim musicals: ''Assassins (musical), Assassins'', ''Sweeney Todd: The ...

, Donovan Leitch, Ally Sheedy, Kevin Cahoon, Matt McGrath ;Broadway (2014–15) *Hedwig:

Andrew Rannells Andrew Scott Rannells (born August 23, 1978) is an American actor. He is best known for originating the role of Elder Kevin Price in the 2011 Broadway musical ''The Book of Mormon (musical), The Book of Mormon'', for which he was nominated for th ...

Michael C. Hall Michael Carlyle Hall (born February 1, 1971) is an American actor and musician. He is known for playing Dexter Morgan, the titular character in the Showtime (TV network), Showtime series ''Dexter (TV series), Dexter'' and David Fisher (Six Feet ...

Darren Criss Darren Everett Criss (born February 5, 1987) is an American actor, singer, and songwriter. He rose to fame starring on the television series ''Glee (TV series), Glee'' (2010–2015) and received a Primetime Emmy Awards, Primetime Emmy Award and ...

, Taye Diggs *Yitzhak: Shannon Conley, Rebecca Naomi Jones ;U.S. National Tour (2016–17) *Hedwig: Euan Morton, Mason Alexander Park, Lena Hall *Yitzhak: Hannah Corneau, Shannon Conley

Productions

Actors who have played Hedwig onstage in the U.S. include

Neil Patrick Harris Neil Patrick Harris (born June 15, 1973) is an American actor, singer, writer, producer, and television host. Primarily known for his comedic television roles and dramatic and musical stage roles, he has received List of awards and nominations ...

, Lena Hall,

, Taye Diggs,

, Ally Sheedy, Euan Morton, Kevin Cahoon, Gene Dante, Anthony Rapp, Matt McGrath, Jeff Skowron, and Nick Garrison, and

iOTA Iota (; uppercase Ι, lowercase ι; ) is the ninth letter of the Greek alphabet. It was derived from the Phoenician letter Yodh. Letters that arose from this letter include the Latin I and J, the Cyrillic І (І, і), Yi (Ї, ї), and J ...

. Other notable figures who have portrayed Hedwig include Donovan Leitch, the glam-rocker son of sixties folk-rock composer

Donovan Donovan Phillips Leitch (born 10 May 1946), known mononymously as Donovan, is a Scottish musician, songwriter and record producer. He emerged from the British folk scene in early 1965 and subsequently scored multiple international hit singles ...

. ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' season 5 winner Jinkx Monsoon also portrayed Hedwig in a Seattle production in 2013.

Off-Broadway

''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' premiered

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

at the

Jane Street Theatre The Jane is a boutique hotel at 505–507 West Street (Manhattan), West Street, on the northeastern corner with Jane Street, in the West Village neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. It was constructed in 1908 by the American Seaman's F ...

on February 14, 1998, and closed on April 9, 2000, after 857 performances. Direction was by Peter Askin and musical staging by Jerry Mitchell, with Hedwig initially played by

and Yitzhak played by Miriam Shor. The theater was located in the ballroom of the Hotel Riverview, which once housed the surviving crew of the ''

Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British ocean liner that sank in the early hours of 15 April 1912 as a result of striking an iceberg on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United States. Of the estimated 2,224 passengers a ...

'' (a fact which figured in the original production). Actors who played Hedwig in this Off-Broadway production included

, Donovan Leitch, Ally Sheedy, Kevin Cahoon, Asa Somers, and Matt McGrath. This production won the

, 1998 Special Citations for Stephen Trask and the casts and the

for Best Off-Broadway Musical.

United Kingdom

''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' opened in the West End at the Playhouse Theatre on September 19, 2000 and closed on November 4, 2000, with

. In the summer of 2010, the show was staged at the George Square Theatre in Edinburgh, Scotland, as part of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. The show was also performed at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2015 at Greenside @ Royal Terrace by young company A Wicked Little Town with a positive reception. In April 2022 a revival starring Divina de Campo as Hedwig and Elijah Ferreira as Yitzhak, directed by Jamie Fletcher opened at the Leeds Playhouse before transferring to HOME, Manchester. It was nominated for three

WhatsOnStage Awards The WhatsOnStage Awards (WOS Awards), formerly known as the Theatregoers' Choice Awards, are organised by the theatre website WhatsOnStage.com. The awards celebrate outstanding achievements in UK theatre, with categories covering both regional p ...

, including best performance for de Campo and best set design. David Binder, who produced the 2014 Broadway revival of ''Hedwig'', announced plans in 2023 to bring the same production to the West End. John Cameron Mitchell had previously revealed plans for a West End transfer of the same production in 2015, although this never came to fruition.

Australia

'Hedwig and the Angry Inch' had its Australian premier at The Clarendon Guest House in Katoomba with a special out of town season playing from 7-28 July 2006. The season sold out and the production moved to Sydney opening on the 9 August 2006 @NEWTOWN on Enmore Road after the initial season of 4 weeks it was extended and played a full 12 week season and sold out. The production moved to Melbourne for a 4 week season at the Athenaeum Theatre. The production was produced by David M. Hawkins with choreography by legendary Ross Coleman starring iOTA as Hedwig and Blazey Best as Yitzak. The production returned to Sydney for a 12 week season at the Tom Mann Theatre in Surry Hills. And got five star reviews from all outlets and won a Helpmann Award for Best Actor In A Musical for iOTA, a Sydney Theatre Awards for Best Musical, Best New Artist for iOTA, and A Green Room Award for Best Actor In A Musical for iOTA. In 2008 the production toured to QPAC in Brisbane with the role of Hedwig played by Michael Falzon and the role of Yitzak by Lucinda Shaw. A season was also presented at The Metro Theatre in Sydney with the same cast. A highly acclaimed cast recording was released of the Original Australian cast in 2007 with iOTA and Blazey Best.

Austria

On March 23, 2006, ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' premiered at Metropol Wien in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

. (with Andreas Bieber – Hedwig and Anke Fiedler – Yitzhak, Director and Costumedesign – Torsten Fischer, Hedwigs Band: Drums – Markus Adamer; Bass – Matthias Petereit – Guitar: Harry Peller – Guitar & Keyboards: – Bernhard Wagner), German Translation – Gerd Koester & Herbert Schaefer) January, May, June 2023, October 2024 Drew Sarich performs as Hedwig in Das Vindobona in Vienna with Ann Mandrella as Yitzhak. Director - Werner Sobotka, costume design - Metamorkid, Hedwigs Band: Drums - Titus Vadon, Bass - Harald Baumgartner, Guitar - Chris Harras, Keyboard, Guitar - Felix Reischl. German version - Wolfgang Böhmer and Rüdiger Bering.

Brazil

In August 2010, a Brazilian adaptation of ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' premiered in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

, with Paulo Vilhena and Pierre Baitelli playing Hedwig. This was the first adaptation where there were two actors simultaneously playing Hedwig onstage. The play was translated by Jonas Calmon Klabin and directed by Evandro Mesquita, with musical direction by Danilo Timm and Evandro Mesquita. Eline Porto played Yitzhak, Alexandre Griva on the drums, Fabrizio Iorio on the keyboards, Patrick Laplan on the bass, and Pedro Nogueira playing the guitar. The musical previews ran from August 10 to September 3, 2010, and the full show ran from September 15 to November 6, 2010, totaling 46 performances. The same production reopened in

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

on August 26, 2011, and ran until October 16, 2011, for a total of 25 performances, now with actors Pierre Baitelli and Felipe Carvalhido playing Hedwig. Eline Porto played Yitzhak, Diego Andrade on the drums, Fabrizio Iorio on the keyboards, Melvin Ribeiro on the bass, and Pedro Nogueira playing the guitar. Nominated for Best Actor (Pierre Baitelli) and Best Musical direction (Danilo Timm and Evandro Mesquita) at the Prêmio Shell de Teatro. Winner of Best Actor (Pierre Baitelli and nominated for Best Production
Oz
, Best Director (Evandro Mesquita), and Best Actress (Eline Porto) at the Prêmio Arte Qualidade Brasil. Also, one nomination for Best Musical in a Brazilian adaptation for the Prêmio Contigo de Teatro. This same production performed again in Rio de Janeiro from April 4–22, 2012, and a tour to Curitiba, performing April 26–29, 2012, for a total of 16 performances. On November 24, 2012, John Cameron Mitchell performed a concert with the Brazilian Hedwig cast and guests and there were another two performances of Hedwig in Rio, November 23 and 25, and 4 performances in Fortaleza, November 29, 30, December 1 and 2, 2012. There were another 7 performances scheduled for February 2014 in

Brasília Brasília ( ; ) is the capital city, capital of Brazil and Federal District (Brazil), Federal District. Located in the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West Region, Brazil, Central-West region, it was founded by President Juscelino ...

and Recife, finalizing the Brazilian Hedwig project with a total of 100 performances. In March 2023 it was announced by the actor Gustavo Essbich that he will be playing on a limited run the titular role of Hedwig and Tuany Aveline as Yitzhak. The premiere will be in the city of Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul (south of Brazil), and later will be transferred to São Paulo.

Canada

The Canadian premiere was in 2001 in Toronto starring Ted Dykstra, with musical direction by Moe Berg of The Pursuit of Happiness. The show premiered in Western Canada with simultaneous productions in Edmonton and Vancouver in April 2003. The Theatre Network production in Edmonton—directed by Bradley Moss and featuring Michael Scholar, Jr. as Hedwig and Rachael Johnston as Yitzhak—opened April 1 and was held over until April 27. In Vancouver, Hoarse Raven Theatre's production, directed by Michael Fera, opened April 4 featuring Greg Armstrong-Morris as Hedwig and Meghan Gardiner as Yitzhak, and was held over until June 7. Further productions in Canada included a sold out 2007 production by Pickled Productions, and a 2009 Toronto production by Ghost Light Projects. From October 2 through to November 2, 2013, Ghost Light Projects returned the production to Vancouver for a five-week engagement at The Cobalt. This production starred Ryan Alexander McDonald as Hedwig and Lee McKeown as Yitzhak, with music direction by Juno Award winner Mark Reid and direction by Randie Parliament and Greg Bishop.

Czech Republic

In spring of 2011, English-language Prague theatre AKANDA staged ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' at Iron Curtain Club, with Jeff Fritz as Hedwig and Uliana Elina as Yitzhak.

Germany

Several productions were shown in Frankfurt/Main in 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 and

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

in 2002, 2013 and 2014. A new production premiered in

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (, ), is the capital of the States of Germany, German state of the Bremen (state), Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (), a two-city-state consisting of the c ...

on June 19, 2014 Cologne * 10 September 1999, Premiere at Halle Kalk under the direction of Torsten Fischer. translated the piece together withset designer Herbert Schäfer and played the title role. took over the musical direction and played the guitarist "Skshp". 70 performances, guest appearance at the theater festival in Berlin. Berlin * October 3, 2002 – November 20, 2002 – Glashaus der Arena Berlin (with Drew Sarich – Hedwig, Director: Rhys Martin) * May 30, 2013 – August 31, 2013 Admiralspalast Klub (with Sven Ratzke – Hedwig, Guntbert Warns – Director) * September 17, 2014 – September 20, 2014 BKA Theater of Berlin (with Sven Ratzke – Hedwig, Guntbert Warns – Director) *February 25, 2014 – February 29, 2014 BKA Theater of Berlin (with Sven Ratzke - Hedwig, Guntbert Warns - Director) *March 18, 2014 – March 21, 2014 BKA Theater of Berlin (with Sven Ratzke - Hedwig, Guntbert Warns - Director) *February 19, 2015 – February 23, 2015 BKA Theater of Berlin (with Sven Ratzke - Hedwig, Guntbert Warns - Director) *March 19, 2015 – March 23, 2015 BKA Theater of Berlin (with Sven Ratzke - Hedwig, Guntbert Warns - Director) *October 18, 2016 – October 22, 2016 BKA Theater of Berlin (with Sven Ratzke - Hedwig, Guntbert Warns - Director) *November 16, 2016 – November 20, 2016 BKA Theater of Berlin (with Sven Ratzke - Hedwig, Guntbert Warns - Director) *September 14, 2020- June 20, 2022, Renaissance Theater of Berlin (with Sven Ratzke - Hedwig, Guntbert Warns - Director) *September 26, 2022- June 28, 2023, Renaissance Theater of Berlin (with Sven Ratzke - Hedwig, Guntbert Warns - Director) Hamburg *November 8, 2016 – November 13, 2016 Schmidts Tivoli (with Sven Ratzke – Hedwig, Guntbert Warns – Director) Frankfurt * February 2008 (with Nigel Francis – Hedwig) * November 20, 2009 – December 20, 2009 – Sinkkasten * November 20, 2010 – January 8, 2011 – Nachtleben * August 19, 2011 – August 21, 2011 – Neues Theater Hoechst (with Nigel Francis – Hedwig and Diana Nagel – Yitzak) * On September 22, 2017, a new production of ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'', directed by Thomas Helmut Heep and starring Michael Kargus as Hedwig, Kathrin Hanak as Yitzhak, and Lukas Witzel as alternate Hedwig, opened at the 200-seat venue Brotfabrik in Frankfurt. Bremen * On June 19, 2014, a German adaptation of ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' premiered at Schwankhalle in

, with actors Pascal Nöldner as Hedwig and Birgit Corinna Lange as Yitzhak. Carsten Sauer (keyboard), Denni Fischer (bass), Keule (guitar), and Norman Karlsen (drums) were in the band. The director was Nomena Struß. There were 12 performances, with a public rehearsal on June 11, 2014.

The Netherlands

Sven Ratzke brought the Berlin production to The Netherlands in 2014 and in 2022 for a tour *June 1, 2014 – June 7, 2014, Stadsschouwburg, Utrecht (with Sven Ratzke – Hedwig, Guntbert Warns – Director) *June 11, 2014 – June 20, 2014, De Kleine Komedie, Amsterdam (with Sven Ratzke – Hedwig, Guntbert Warns – Director) *October 4, 2022 – October 16, 2022 9 shows in several Theaters in The Netherlands, among them Delamar Theater Amsterdam (with Sven Ratzke – Hedwig, Guntbert Warns – Director)

Israel

In May 2020, ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' was planned to make its Israeli premiere at the Cinema City Theatre, in Hebrew and with Roi Dolev as Hedwig, and featuring wigs by original Broadway wig designer Mike Potter. However, the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

forced the production to postpone its opening. Shortly after, the production released a single recorded in quarantine, which was praised by author

as "one of the best Wicked Little Town versions ever." On August 9, 2020, the production announced its intentions to present pre-premiere performances for small, socially distanced audiences, beginning October 2020. However, in January 2021, Dolev revealed the production is still in limbo due to Israel entering a second and third quarantines, not allowing public performances to occur. In March 2021, the production began pre-premiere performances, thus marking it the first musical production in Israel to resume performing following the COVID-19 pandemic. The production then went on tour in Israel in the summer of 2021, followed by an official opening night on June 8, 2022, at the Cinema City Theater, and moved to Beit Hahayal in 2023. The production closed on April 10, 2023. The production was praised by

Ynet Ynet (stylized in all lowercase) is an Israeli news and general-content website, and the online outlet for the '' Yedioth Ahronoth'' newspaper. History Ynet launched on June 6, 2000, in Hebrew, following other Hebrew outlet's website launches ...

as "one of the most refreshing things seen n Israellately." Walla! added "the brilliant show finally made it to Israel, and it's just excellent."

Italy

Italian Premiere of ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' by British ''Atrocity Tour'' in 2004: * November 3–14, 2004 at Teatro Ariberto,

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

with original ''Atrocity Tour''-Cast, produced by Alessio Rombolotti in association with Helen Merill NYC, Simone Stucchi – Sound Engineer

Japan

Production of the musical started on June 16, 2005, at Parco Theater, with a translation by Aoi Yoji, starring Hiroshi Mikami and Emi Eleonola.
On February 15, 2007, a new on-stage version was released, starting at Shinjuku Face in Tokyo, translation by Kitamaru Yuji and starring Koji Yamamoto.
April 4, 2008, saw a reprise, with Koji Yamamoto in the lead, again at the Shinjuku Face in Tokyo, spanning even more venues than the previous year.
2009 saw a two-city run, in November 27 at the Wel City in Osaka, and December 2 till the 6th at Tokyo's Zepp Tokyo.
After 3 years, in 2012, Hedwig got a new opportunity, starting September 28, at Zepp DiverCity Tokyo, with Mirai Moriyama in the lead, and the lyrics translated by Shikao Suga.
A new edition of the musical started August 31, 2019, at Tokyo Ex Theater Roppongi, with Neko Oikawa's lyrics, Kenji Urai as the main character, and Avu Barazono as Yitzhak; and with DURAN (Gt), YUTARO (Ba), Kusunose Takuya (Dr), Hideyuki Ohashi (Gt), Akane Otsuka (Key) as members of the band THE ANGRY INCH.

México

In April 2011, the show was staged in San Miguel de Allende and was presented in both English and Spanish simultaneously. It was also staged as a special event at the Guanajuato Film Festival. This production won the Best of San Miguel Theatre Award for 2011. In June 2017, the play was presented once again in Zacapu, Michoacán de Ocampo, under the initiative of promoting LGBTQ+ culture and rights, and this time it was entirely in Spanish. The function was carried out by an independent theater group, in collaboration with the rock band: Karma, and also coincided with the Festival: Tianguis Multicultural del Bajío 2017, thus achieving a full house in a one-time, non-profit function.

The Netherlands

In June 2014, Sven Ratzke (as Hedwig) brought the Berlin Production of Hedwig and the Angry Inch for a three-week run to Amsterdam (location: De Kleine Komedie), Utrecht (Stadsschouwburg Utrecht) and Eindhoven (Parktheater Eindhoven). The show got rave reviews in the Netherlands.

New Zealand

In May 2019, ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' makes its New Zealand premiere at Christchurch's The Court Theatre with Adam Rennie taking the lead role.

South Korea

Premiering in 2005, "Hedwig" has been performed about 2,300 times, making it the country's longest-running steady-selling musical.

Seomoon Tak Seomoon Tak (born March 3, 1978), sometimes known mononymously as Tak, is a South Korean singer, noted for her powerful voice and technically skilled wide vocal range. Her debut album ''Asura'' has been among the top 20 popular karaoke songs in ...

, South Korea's famous rock singer, played Yitzhak with Cho Seung-woo as Hedwig. In the 2021 production, Hedwig is portrayed by Ren, Cho Seung-woo, Oh Man-seok, Lee Kyu-hyung and Ko Eun-sung. In 2017, it was produced in English, starring Korean-American musical actor Michael K.Lee.

Thailand

The show was put on by the Bangkok University Theatre Company in July, 2011. It was then put on again in Mongkol RCA Studio in June, 2014. In both productions, Hedwig was played by Chanudol Suksatit.

Turkey

The Turkish premiere was in 2016 in Istanbul featuring Yilmaz Sutcu as Hedwig and Ayse Gunyuz as Yitzhak, with direction by Baris Arman at Kazan Dairesi.

United States

In 1999, Broadway In Boston presented the first production of ''Hedwig'' outside of New York City, at The 57 Theatre at 200 Stuart Street, Boston. Directed by Peter Askin and starring Kevin Cahoon as Hedwig and Cory Waletzko as Yitzhak, the show's official opening date was September 28, 1999. The show was performed 8 times a week until its closing in early November 1999. The Signature Theatre in the Washington, D.C., area produced the show in 2002. In 2002 and 2003, Zany Hijinx produced the show in Boston, MA with Gene Dante as Hedwig and Lisa Boucher as Yitzhak. Fitzgerald's in Houston hosted a production in 2004, starring David Gill as Hedwig, and Lynda Self as Yitzhak. The show was directed by Jef Rouner, and featured musical contributions from Asmodeus X

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

: In the summer of 2010, ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' played in San Juan, Puerto Rico with Gil René playing the part of Hedwig and the band Simples Mortales doing all the live music. This version of Hedwig was completely translated into Spanish. In 2011, Gene Dante and Lisa van Oosterum reprise their roles as Hedwig and Yitzhak in Zany Hijinx's New England tour of ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch.'' A

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

production at Boxcar Theatre in summer 2012 featured twelve actors, male and female and of multiple ethnicities, portraying Hedwig in each show. A revival of the production, beginning in December 2012 and continuing through August 2013, featured eight actors nightly in the lead role. In June 2013 JJ Parkey and Ruthie Stephens played Hedwig and Yitzhak at the Short North Stage Production in Columbus, Ohio. After a successful 2013 run and a New Year's Eve performance, Roxy Theatricals presented the production from January 17 to February 1, 2014, at The Legacy Theatre in Springfield, IL. The show was produced by TheatreLAB and Spin, Spit & Swear in Richmond, Virginia in October 2014. Matt Shofner starred as Hedwig and Bianca Bryan played Yitzhak. In Norfolk, Virginia, June of 2024, Rouge Theater put on a production of ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'', starring Steve Pacek as Hedwig and Leila Stephanie as Yitzhak. A production o
Hedwig and the Angry Inch
was staged a
The Arch
in Denver from August 1 to August 24, 2024. This production starred Clark Destin Jones as Hedwig; the role of Yitzhak was played by Anne Terze-Schwartz and Emma Rebecca Maxfield during different segments of the run. The Peregrine Theatre Ensemble of

Provincetown, Massachusetts Provincetown () is a New England town located at the extreme tip of Cape Cod in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, in the United States. A small coastal resort town with a year-round population of 3,664 as of the 2020 United States census, Provi ...

staged a production of ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' from July 5 to August 31, 2024, starring Alec Diem as Hedwig and Ash Moran as Yitzhak.

Broadway

starred in the first Broadway production at the Belasco Theatre, which began previews on March 29, 2014, and officially opened on April 22, 2014. Harris stayed in the production through August 17, 2014. The director was Michael Mayer with musical staging by Spencer Liff. Lena Hall played Yitzhak, Hedwig's husband, until April 2015. This production won several Tony awards, including Best Revival of a Musical, Best Lead Actor in a Musical (Harris) and Best Featured Actress in a musical (Hall). It was also nominated for Best Costume Design for a Musical ( Arianne Phillips), who also did the costumes for the original 2001 film. After Harris departed the production,

took over the role of Hedwig on August 20, 2014, followed by

, who played Hedwig from October 16, 2014, through January 18, 2015. The production then featured co-creator

, who returned to the role from January 21 to April 26, 2015.

took over the role of Hedwig on April 29 and played until July 19, 2015. Taye Diggs assumed the role on July 22, 2015, and performed through the production's end on September 13, 2015. After Lena Hall left the production on April 4, 2015, Rebecca Naomi Jones took over as Yitzhak on April 14, 2015, following a week-long stint with Shannon Conley in the role. The Broadway production closed on September 13, 2015, after 22 previews and 507 regular performances.

''Hurt Locker: The Musical''

This version of the musical updates the story to modern day and has Hedwig performing on the abandoned set of the fictional ''Hurt Locker: The Musical'', which closed the prior evening midway through its first performance. Hedwig explains that because it closed so quickly, she was able to convince one of the producers to allow her to use what would have been an otherwise empty and unused stage. Faux

Playbill ''Playbill'' is an American monthly magazine for Audience, theatergoers. Although there is a subscription issue available for home delivery, most copies of ''Playbill'' are printed for particular productions and distributed at the door as the ...

s for the musical are littered throughout the theater and discuss various elements of the musical, which Hedwig occasionally mentions offhand throughout the musical. Director Michael Mayer stated that they came up with the idea for ''Hurt Locker: The Musical'' as a way to explain Hedwig's presence in a Broadway theater. It was also used as a way to update the script to modern day as well as explain how Hedwig would be able to use such stage settings. Various newspapers have commented favorably on the faux Playbills, both as an element of the musical and as a piece separate from the musical itself.

First U.S. Tour

A national tour of the 2014 Broadway production began at San Francisco's Golden Gate Theatre on October 4, 2016, starring

as Hedwig and Lena Hall as Yitzhak respectively. Hall portrayed the title role of Hedwig once a week for eight performances, making her the first actor to play both Hedwig and Yitzhak in the same production. Hall and Criss ended their run on November 27, 2016. From November 29, 2016, to July 2, 2017, Euan Morton and Hannah Corneau portrayed Hedwig and Yitzhak, respectively, with Mason Alexander Park continuing on as the Hedwig Standby/Alternate and Shannon Conley as the Yitzhak standby.

20th Anniversary Origin of Love Tour

In 2019 John Cameron Mitchell created and starred in
The Origin of Love Tour: The Songs and Stories of Hedwig
', a stripped-down performance focusing on the music and first-person stories about the creation of the original off-Broadway production. Mitchell embarked on the tour to raise money for medical costs related to their mother, who suffers from late-stage

Alzheimer's Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

. In addition to songs from '' Hedwig'', the show also includes numbers from Mitchell's musical podcast '' Anthem: Homunculus'', their film '' How to Talk to Girls at Parties'', and covers from artists such as

Adaptation

In 2001,

adapted, directed and starred in a

film adaptation A film adaptation transfers the details or story of an existing source text, such as a novel, into a feature film. This transfer can involve adapting most details of the source text closely, including characters or plot points, or the original sou ...

of the musical, also named '' Hedwig and the Angry Inch''.

In popular culture

* In season 1, episode 5 of the 2019 television series ''

Sex Education Sex education, also known as sexual education, sexuality education or sex ed, is the instruction of issues relating to human sexuality, including human sexual anatomy, Human sexual activity, sexual activity, sexual reproduction, safe sex, birth ...

'', two main characters plan to attend a performance of ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' while wearing costumes from the musical, as part of a yearly tradition. * In 2020, the television series '' Riverdale'' based their musical episode from the fourth season titled " Chapter Seventy-Four: Wicked Little Town" on ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch''. * During a musical-inspired runway on episode 5 of series 4 of '' RuPaul's Drag Race UK'', contestant Cheddar Gorgeous presented a runway look inspired by ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch''. * Type O Negative's 2003 album '' Life Is Killing Me'' includes a cover of "Angry Inch".

Themes and analysis

The musical explores queer identity and challenges the notion of rock culture as being separate from live theatre. It adds to the increasing number of mainstream films and media that questions dichotomous views on sex and gender. Hedwig and the Angry Inch also provides a space for openly queer performers in this alternative theatre movement and punk subculture that is often labelled as

queercore Queercore (or homocore) is a cultural/social movement that began in the mid-1980s as an offshoot of the punk subculture and a music genre that comes from punk rock. It is distinguished by its discontent with society in general, and specifically ...

. Instead of a conventional transgender narrative that looks at an individual's account of gender dysphoria, Hedwig and the Angry Inch focuses on the main character's journey of finding love "by looking within." Academics have also recognised the link between Hedwig's search for her 'other half' and Plato's 'Origin of Love', one of Hedwig's numbers. In league with the Western emphasis on individualism, Hedwig and the Angry Inch questions what it means to be divided in an individualist society. As Mitchell, director of the film adaptation, acknowledges, through recurring motifs of "the divided self, the divided city of Berlin…divided gender…" the theme of dualism pervades the entire musical.

Reception

The musical was praised by

David Fricke David Fricke (born ) is an American music journalist who serves as the senior editor at ''Rolling Stone'' magazine, where he writes predominantly about rock music. One of the best known names in rock journalism, his career has spanned over 40 ye ...

of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' as "the first rock musical that truly rocks". The show also attracted many fans in the music world. The show's authenticity, and its use of characters outside the usual hetero-normative constraints of theatre, was also remarked upon.

Awards and honors

The original production won a

Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture publication based in Greenwich Village, New York City, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Ma ...

and the

for Best Off-Broadway Musical. The 2014 Broadway production received eight 2014

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

nominations: Best Revival of a Musical, Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical (

), Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical ( Lena Hall), Best Scenic Design of a Musical (Julian Crouch), Best Costume Design of a Musical ( Arianne Phillips), Best Lighting Design of a Musical ( Kevin Adams), Best Sound Design of a Musical (Tim O'Heir) and Best Direction of a Musical. The production won four Tony Awards (tied with '' A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder'' for most awards in 2014): Best Revival of a Musical, Best Lighting Design of a Musical, Best Featured Actress in a Musical for Lena Hall, and Best Actor in a Musical for

Original 1998 off-Broadway production

Original 2014 Broadway production

2016 U.S. Tour

Fandom

Fans of the play and film refer to themselves as "Hedheads". In Korea and Japan, a number of teen idols and respected actors have played the role and inspired a large number of young, female Hedheads.

Recordings

* 1998 Original off-Broadway Cast * 2000 Movie Soundtrack * 2002 "Wig" Cleveland Public Theatre Cast * 2003 Wig in a Box (tribute album) * 2004 UK Atrocity Tour cast * 2005 Original Korean Cast * 2005 Peruvian Cast (Hedwig Y la Pulgada Furiosa) * 2006 Korean Cast * 2006 Original Australian Cast * 2014 Original Broadway Cast * 2022 Original Israeli Cast

Song covers

In 2003, Chris Slusarenko's Off Records released an album called '' Wig in a Box'', a charity

tribute album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track or cassette), or digital. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century a ...

which also included new material adding to the mythology of ''Hedwig''. Performers included Frank Black and

The Breeders The Breeders are an American alternative rock band based in Dayton, Ohio, consisting of members Kim Deal (rhythm guitar, lead vocals), her twin sister Kelley Deal (lead guitar, vocals), Josephine Wiggs (bass guitar, vocals) and Jim Macpherson ( ...

. Slusarenko said that he fielded questions from

Kim Deal Kimberley Ann Deal (born June 10, 1961) is an American musician. She was the original bassist and co-vocalist in the alternative rock band the Pixies (band), Pixies from 1986 to 1993 and again from 2004 to 2013. She is the frontwoman of the Bre ...

of The Breeders about Black, her former bandmate in

The Pixies The Pixies are an American alternative rock band from Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1986 by Black Francis (vocals, rhythm guitar, songwriter), Joey Santiago (lead guitar), Kim Deal (bass, vocals) and David Lovering (drums). The Pi ...

, with whom she'd had limited conversation since the band's breakup in 1993. They made contact soon after, and Pixies reunited the following spring. Other bands who participated in "Wig in a Box" were

Yo La Tengo Yo La Tengo (Spanish language, Spanish for "I've got it"; also abbreviated as YLT) is an American indie rock band formed in Hoboken, New Jersey, in 1984. Since 1992, the lineup has consisted of Ira Kaplan (guitars, piano, vocals), Georgia Hubley ...

featuring

, Sleater-Kinney featuring Fred Schneider (of

The B-52's The B-52s, originally presented as the B-52's (with an errant apostrophe; used until 2008), are an American band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1976. The original lineup consisted of Fred Schneider (vocals, percussion), Kate Pierson (vocals, k ...

), Jonathan Richman,

Rufus Wainwright Rufus McGarrigle Wainwright (born July 22, 1973) is a Canadian and American singer, songwriter, and composer. He has recorded eleven studio albums and numerous tracks on compilations and film soundtracks. He has also written two classical opera ...

, Polyphonic Spree,

Spoon A spoon (, ) is a utensil consisting of a shallow bowl (also known as a head), oval or round, at the end of a handle. A type of cutlery (sometimes called flatware in the United States), especially as part of a table setting, place setting, it ...

, Imperial Teen,

Bob Mould Robert Arthur Mould (born October 16, 1960) is an American musician, principally known for his work as guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter for alternative rock bands Hüsker Dü in the 1980s and Sugar (American band), Sugar in the 1990s. Early ...

Cyndi Lauper Cynthia Ann Stephanie Lauper ( ; born June 22, 1953) is an American singer, songwriter and actress. Known for her distinctive image, featuring a variety of hair colors and eccentric clothing, and for her powerful four-octave vocal range;Jerome, ...

with The Minus Five (featuring Peter Buck of

R.E.M. R.E.M. was an American alternative rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe, who were students at the University of Georgia. One of the fir ...

), The Bens ( Ben Folds,

Ben Lee Benjamin Michael Lee (born 11 September 1978) is an Australian musician and actor. Lee began his career as a musician at the age of 14 with the Sydney band Noise Addict, but he focused on his solo career when the band broke up in 1995. He app ...

and

Ben Kweller Benjamin Lev Kweller (born June 16, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. A former member of Radish, Kweller has released six solo albums and appeared on several collaborations. Early life Ben Kweller was born in S ...

They Might Be Giants They Might Be Giants, often abbreviated as TMBG, is an American alternative rock and Children's music, children's band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years, Flansburgh and Linnell frequently performed as ...

, and

Robyn Hitchcock Robyn Rowan Hitchcock (born 3 March 1953) is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. While primarily a vocalist and guitarist, he also plays harmonica, piano, and bass guitar. After leading the Soft Boys in the late 1970s and releasing the ...

. Trask and Mitchell completed an unfinished Tommy Gnosis song (left over from the musical's development days) called "Milford Lake" (sung by Mitchell) and included it. The CD also features comedian

Stephen Colbert Stephen Tyrone Colbert ( ; born May 13, 1964) is an American comedian, writer, producer, political commentator, actor, and television host. He is best known for hosting the satirical Comedy Central program ''The Colbert Report'' from 2005 to ...

reciting the spoken introduction to '' Tear Me Down''. The profits of this album benefitted The Hetrick-Martin Institute, home of the Harvey Milk High School, a New York City public school for gay,

lesbian A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexu ...

bisexual Bisexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior toward both males and females. It may also be defined as the attraction to more than one gender, to people of both the same and different gender, or the attraction t ...

transgender A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth. The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...

and questioning youth who have experienced discrimination and violence in other public schools or at home and are at risk of not completing their secondary education. "Follow My Voice: With the Music of Hedwig", a documentary about the making of the "Wig in a Box" benefit cd, profiled students from the Harvey Milk School. It was directed by Katherine Linton and produced by the Sundance Channel and is now available on DVD. The

gothic metal Gothic metal (or goth metal) is a fusion genre combining the aggression of heavy metal music, heavy metal with the dark atmospheres of gothic rock. The music of gothic metal is diverse with bands known to adopt the gothic approach to different ...

band Type O Negative covered "Angry Inch" on their 2003 album '' Life Is Killing Me''.

Meat Loaf Michael Lee Aday (born Marvin Lee Aday; September 27, 1947 – January 20, 2022), known professionally by his stage name Meat Loaf, was an American singer and actor. He was known for his powerful, wide-ranging voice and theatrical live shows. ...

covered "Tear Me Down" that same year on his album '' Couldn't Have Said It Better'', modifying some of the lyrics (notably the spoken section about the Berlin Wall) so that the song is instead about

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

and Meat Loaf's own life. One of the bonus tracks of ''Damn Skippy'', "Pirate In A Box" by

Lemon Demon Lemon Demon is a musical project and band created by American comedian and musician Neil Cicierega in 2003 in Boston, Massachusetts. Lemon Demon's studio work is performed solely by Cicierega, who is the project's sole official member. Live per ...

, is a parody of ''Wig In a Box''. Ben Jelen covered Hedwig's version of "Wicked Little Town" on his 2004 album '' Give It All Away''. Future Kings of Spain covered "Angry Inch" for the b-side of their 2003 single, "Hanging Around". The Brazilian glam band Star 61 covered "Angry Inch" with lyrics in Portuguese (Polegada Irada) for their first 2005 demo album.

Dar Williams Dorothy Snowden "Dar" Williams (born April 19, 1967) is an American pop folk singer-songwriter from Mount Kisco, New York. Hendrik Hertzberg of ''The New Yorker'' has described Williams as "one of America's very best singer-songwriters." She ...

, who is a college friend of composer Stephen Trask, covered "Midnight Radio" on her 2008 album ''Promised Land''.

Constantine Maroulis Constantine James Maroulis (; born September 17, 1975) is an American actor and rock singer. He was the sixth-place finalist on the fourth season of the reality television series ''American Idol'', and received a nomination for the Tony Award f ...

covered "Midnight Radio" on his debut solo album, '' Constantine'', in 2007. Underthings covered "Midnight Radio" on their 2012 album ''Beautiful Grotesque''.https://open.spotify.com/artist/7Akfm1uV3QAg4A35kNWWXC

Notes

References

External links

Official Broadway website
* *
Hedwig.com.au Official site of the Australian production of Hedwig

Hedwig in a Box Official fan club

Official site of the German production Bremen 2014 of Hedwig

Official Facebook of the German production Bremen 2014 of Hedwig

Official site of the German production Berlin 2013, 2014 of Hedwig

Official Facebook of the German production Berlin 2013, 2014 of Hedwig

Official site of the German production Frankfurt 2010, 2011 of Hedwig

Hedwig in Cleveland official site

Hedwig Brazil
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hedwig And The Angry Inch (Musical) 1998 musicals Drama Desk Award–winning musicals Fictional musical groups Drag (entertainment)-related musicals Obie Award–winning plays Off-Broadway musicals Original musicals Sung-through musicals Rock musicals Rock operas Transgender-related theatre Hedwig and the Angry Inch Tony Award–winning musicals Musicals set in Germany Musicals set in Kansas Musicals set in Berlin