Our new theater critic MB Case takes a look at Azuka’s stab at cult classic Hedwig and the Angry Inch. It should be noted that the performance she attended was a preview. The play opens tonight.

Take a musical about a fictional glam rock band fronted by a transgendered singer who has an “angry inch” thanks to a botched sex-change operation, throw in Dito van Reigersberg – one of Philadelphia’s most beloved actors and drag queens – and expect, rightly in this case, a good show. Azuka Theatre’s production of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, under the direction of Kevin Glaccum, delivers in this rock opera that has been a cult favorite since its off-Broadway debut in 1998.

With its flamboyant lyrics, visual styles, and tendency towards camp, glam was the perfect genre to inspire songwriter Stephen Trask and playwright John Cameron Mitchell. In the music of Gary Glitter, David Bowie, and Marc Bolan, the underlying search for self through layers and costume provided a way to seek love and said self, all while affirming gender differences and a myriad of sexual preferences.

Hedwig tells us of her life and misfortunes through song and monologue, a story about finding one’s other half as much as finding one’s self. It is a heartbreaking journey that hurtles along at a nice pace largely due to the music. The music is provocative, the lyrics revealing, the ballads satisfyingly addictive.

Local musicians Troy Herion, Rich Hill, Andrew Nelson, and Ned Sonstein – as the band The Angry Inch – are tight and do a commendable job backing up their charge. Kim Carson is effective as Yihtzak, Hedwig’s second husband and band member, and her moments with Hedwig are some of the highlights of the show. “The Origin of Love” is especially moving, the punk-fueled “Angry Inch” aggressive and satisfying. A wonderful moment occurs at play’s end when Hedwig performs a reprise of the lovely and heartbreaking “Wicked Little Town.” The song is lush with pathos, and van Reigersberg delivers perfectly.

The delivery of the monologues did not propel this complex story along with the same energy as the music. The story seemed buried and unclear when not in song. Hedwig’s monologues often hinted at Martha Graham Cracker, a fallback to van Reigersberg’s popular cabaret character. But when singing, he inhabited Hedwig entirely.

This is a story refreshing in its rebellion and its approach to the idea of seeking acceptance, love, and self. And, as plays go, it is good show. — MB Case

Hedwig and the Angry Inch, through May 11th at The Latvian Society, 531 North 7th Street.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 23rd, 2008 at 2:26 pm and is filed under Reviews, Theater. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Posted by Victor Fiorillo on 4/23/08 in Reviews, Theater