Hedwig the Musical
Gender-bending and genre-redefining, Hedwig and the Angry Inch is a rock musical that's just bursting with dragalicious attitude. You're in for a concert with a difference as this big-haired transsexual vixen from East Germany steps up to the microphone to tell you her life story. Pop star Tommy Gnosis, the love of her life, is playing a sell-out stadium tour just across the way. Meanwhile she's stuck performing in a low dive with her bitchy husband Yitzhak constantly interrupting her. As her problems mount, will she even make it to the end of the show? Get some Hedwig tickets at StubHub to find out!
Hedwig: behind the wig and eyelashes
The show's co-creator John Cameron Mitchell spent part of his childhood in Germany where he lived with his father, a US army officer. It was here that he met a babysitter with a colourful personal life who would later be the model for Hedwig. Tommy, the American boy she takes under her wing and who goes on to break her heart, was based on Mitchell himself. The other key influence on the show was the glam rock of the early '70s and the androgynous look of performers like Marc Bolan and the New York Dolls. Mitchell and composer Stephen Trask took four years to develop the material for the musical, honing songs in live gigs in order to keep the show rooted in a raw, punk aesthetic. Hedwig opened off-Broadway in 1998 with Mitchell in the lead role. Earning an Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical, it spawned a film version in 2001 with Mitchell both starring and directing.
Hedwig gets a makeover
In 2014 there was a major revival of Hedwig, helmed by Michael Mayer, who made his name with award-winning productions of Thoroughly Modern Millie and Spring Awakening. Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother) headlined the show in high heels, fishnets and denim cut-offs, to be replaced later on in the sell-out run by Michael C. Hall (Dexter). This glittering new version wowed the critics, scooping up four Tonies and two Drama Desk Awards among a host of other accolades. After closing on Broadway, it embarked on a successful North American tour.
Similar To Hedwig and the Angry Inch
To check out another great rock musical at StubHub try All Shook Up. Or how about more drag beauty drama with Priscilla Queen of the Desert?
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