By Chuck Graham, TucsonStage.com
photo courtesy of Maria Gawne
Hedwig (Jordan Ross Siebert), left, and Yitzhak (Liz Cracchiolo).
Just before the March 16 coronavirus clamp-down on all Tucson theater, Arizona Onstage Productions and SPARK! staged one performance of “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” featuring Jordan Ross Siebert in the title role.
The show was powerful, both heart-wrenching and transformative, a stunning experience that turned the aggressive Tony Award-winning rock musical into so much more at the Cabaret Space in the downtown Temple of Music and Art.
From a stage set soaked in the sleaze of a tawdry nightclub where flouncy wigs and a ripe attitude define defiance, director Shanna Nunez took us head first into the tangled, angry, frightened and frightening life of Hedwig in sultry makeup, a singer/songwriter dealt with cruelly by Fate and by the communist demands of East Germany.
“Hedwig and the Angry Inch” made its New York debut in 1998 after years of workshopping, developed to portray a turbulent time for rock culture as hard punk rockers called for a revolution against the over-produced vinyl albums of bands spending many weeks and astronomical bucks in the recording studio, about as far from rock 'n' roll's proudly undisciplined roots as the yellow brick road could take them.
Through it all Hedwig stood tall in her high-heeled platform shoes, short skirts and distinctively swooping hair. Her story – the heart of this musical – has become an iconic page of essential pop culture.
Born a boy named Hansel to unhappy parents in East Berlin, Hansel grew into a teen who loved American rock bands and also loved an American GI. But the only way he could escape East Berlin to reach the West was to be the wife of that Yank. He would need a sex change operation.
Alas, the operation failed, leaving him with only an angry inch of manhood and no hope of becoming the G.I.'s lifetime war bride. Months later the Berlin Wall was torn down.
More bitterness followed in Kansas when Hedwig and his friend Tommy Speck found some success writing songs. Tommy became Tommy Gnosis and their first album became a hit, prompting Tommy to break up the act and become a genuine rock star on his own – leaving Hedwig alone with her box of wigs, forced into staying alive by playing low rent gigs that mocked her talent.
That is where Siebert as Hedwig lifted this Tucson production into a raw and ravishing piece of anguished theater that feels as real as your own hopes to make more of yourself some day.
Siebert has performed this role several times back East, finding particular success in Baltimore. His understanding of the psychological rigors of Hedwig's life runs deep.
The person he creates is filled with the armor of pretense and the trembling of collapse. Then desperation turns into anger, as the power of drag queen illusion is splintered by punk rock's demand for inner truth.
The show begins as Hedwig opens her act making a bitterly haughty entrance filled with naughty puns. Soon she is telling her life story, an icy beauty on the outside but still furious inside that Tommy left her in such dire straits.
Included in the score's 10 songs and in the dialogue are ample references to touchstones of the 1980s. Bone up on tape decks and eight-tracks, bands like Boston, Kansas and America, singers like Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, David Bowie and Lavern Baker.
Steven Trask wrote the songs and lyrics for John Cameron Mitchell's book and debut performance as Hedwig. He did include some brighter bits, jokes and even an audience sing-along chorus on “Wig in a Box.”
The only other cast member is Liz Cracchiolo, as Hedwig's sullen combination husband and roadie, Yitzhak. He doesn't say much, but his soulful singing adds a massive wallop to the end of the story.
Also on stage is The Angry Inch band of Michael James Zimmerman, keyboard and guitar, Steve Harris, bass, Tucker Bungard, drums, and Taylor Bungard, guitar and bass, becoming a muscular physical presence.
Kevin Johnson of Arizona Onstage hopes to re-mount this production in May, with Seibert, Crachiolo and all the band members returning. Be there yourself or be geometrically challenged. Future plans for “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” also include a tour.
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