“Hedwig and the Angry Inch” has had a long and illustrious history; from the 1998 Off-Broadway debut to the 2001 film adaption and the 2014 Broadway stage production starring Neil Patrick Harris. It was developed collaboratively between John Cameron Mitchell (JCM) and Steven Trask, with Hedwig based on JCM’s persona.
Co-directors Shane Anthony and Dino Dimitriadis have bought this rock and roll story of a German immigrant moving to America to pursue the dream of touring rock ’n roll to Australian audiences for the first time. Seann Miley Moore has stepped up from his acclaimed role as the Engineer in “Miss Saigon” to bring the role of Hedwig to life.
The Australian premiere opened in Adelaide’s Queen’s Theatre, the oldest surviving theatre in mainland Australia. The audience surround the circular stage on three sides. Jeremy Allen’s set consisted of a spiral staircase below which the performers and the band are mainly confined. Geoff Cobham’s inspiring lighting expanded the stage, with shadows projected onto the walls of the theatre. Jamie Mensworth’s sound design brings a full sound of the four-piece band sharing the stage. Perhaps the only unclarity was during some of the storytelling between songs.
Costume design partners Katie-Louise and Lilian Nicole-Ford have faithfully recreated the styling and campness of the original production. The choreography from Amy Campbell was well paced with good use of the limited space available.
The musical opens with “Tear Me Down” as Hedwig recounts her life and is determined to tell her story. We follow the progress of Hedwig’s life in East Berlin in the early 60s. Hansel (as he is then) is fascinated by Aristophane’s speech in Plato’s Symposium, talking about three sexes, man-man, woman-woman and manwoman. These four-legged creatures were split in two by jealous gods, leaving each half searching for their lost mate. Thus begins the “Origin of Love.”
She falls in love with an American soldier, Luther Robinson, who convinces her to dress in drag and have a sex change operation. He’s her “Sugar Daddy”, an uplifting and happy song. However, the operation goes disastrously wrong, leaving Hansel with an “Angry Inch”. Taking her mother’s name and passport, she leaves Berlin with Luther to live in Kansas.
Luther leaves her on their first wedding anniversary for another man, Hedwig reinvents herself with a “Wig in a Box”. She then forms a relationship with Tommy and names him Tommy Gnosis, meaning having knowledge of spiritual mysteries. They write songs together and she believes that Tommy is her true soulmate.
However, he discovers her “inch” and leaves her. He goes on to become a successful rock star, whilst Hedwig follows him around with her partner Yitzhak (played by Adam Noviello). They have an acrimonious relationship, but he is always there to pick up the pieces. We have glimpse of Tommy’s presence through the open door of the seedy clubs where Hedwig plays, and she is constantly hoping for a crumb of recognition for his success.
The musical numbers go from uplifting and joyful to the depths of despair with “Hedwig’s Lament.” Seann Miley Moore injects a good sprinkling of camp into the performance and has a dynamic interaction with the audience. The band are an integral part of the show and remain on stage even during the storytelling between songs. The acrimonious interactions between Hedwig and Yitzhak are cleverly funny. The message is of searching for the lost half of the primitive life – maybe the other half is successful, and you are not, maybe your lives run in parallel. Who knows?
Hedwig and the Angry Inch is an uplifting, joyful take on an underlying difficult subject matter. An enthusiastic standing ovation, proving that love conquers all.
The reviewer attended opening night on 25/02/25
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