A Fabulously Funny, Powerfully Felt ‘Hedwig’
Led by Sawyer Smith's towering performance, Signature's "Hedwig and the Angry Inch" is a delirious blend of glam, punk, soul, and drag.
At this point, Hedwig and the Angry Inch has stood nearly as long as the Berlin Wall stood dividing East and West, repression and freedom. After 28 years — long years for Germans on either side of the Wall, yet relatively brief in human history — they tore down that blunt, brutal symbol of post-war Communist control.
It’s been about 28 years since Hedwig Robinson, a fictional trans woman rock ‘n ‘roller from East Berlin, first came screaming onto stage in this Off-Broadway musical, with text by John Cameron Mitchell and music and lyrics by Stephen Trask, and, despite all the hate and division still roiling this world, that glorious bitch is still rocking.
Now herself a symbol of underdogs and queer misfits wresting freedom from repression, Hedwig endures. She’ll outlast us all, as long as productions as forceful and as thoroughly realized as Ethan Heard’s new staging at Signature Theatre continue to exuberantly share the message contained in Hedwig’s sometimes gut-wrenching story and these brilliant songs.
Hedwig and the Angry Inch, is, after all, not just the name of the show and a cheeky reference to her botched sex change operation, but the name of her band.
This is a rock concert, essentially, and this Hedwig — interpreted as a sexy, confrontational comedienne by trans femme performer Sawyer Smith — puts on a fantastic show, backed by Hedwig’s man Friday, Yitzhak (Vanessa “V” Sterling), and a pumped four-piece band led by music director Marika Countouris on keys.
Coutouris even whips out a keytar for the grinding groove of “Exquisite Corpse,” Hedwig’s bold reclamation of her body, inside and out. “Oh God, I’m all sewn up, a hardened razor-cut,” the diva sings. “A collage! I’m all sewn up.” In tone and topic, “Exquisite Corpse” picks up the convo kicked off by earlier botched-surgery screed “Angry Inch,” performed with blistering punk attitude by Smith and company.
Each element of Heard’s production, from the performances, costumes, wigs, and scenic design to the keytar, puts some authentic spin on the delirious blend of glam, glitter, punk, soul, and drag that have earned Hedwig its perch in the firmament of this business we call show.
Richie Oullette’s immersive scenic design transforms Signature’s intimate ARK Theatre into just the sort of intricately messy, slightly campy rock dive Hedwig and the Angry Inch would likely turn up to play — “whether you like it or not,” according to Yitzhak’s cranky introduction.
It might be that any Hedwig, or Hedwig, is only as good as her Yitzhak, and Sterling serves as a splendid second fiddle to Smith. Supplying smooth harmonies, and soaring through solos whenever Yitzhak grabs the spotlight — as on a sublimely desolate take on “The Long Grift” — they shore up Yitzhak’s part in this moving tale of a damaged person, “split in two,” desperately seeking her missing other half.
Hedwig bravely shares with us that she thought she’d found her other half in her ex-lover, now known the world over as rock star Tommy Gnosis. Conveniently, and much to the hilarious consternation of Hedwig, Tommy is currently playing a sold-out stadium show just a hop and a skip from her low-rent gig.
Smith never fails to get laughs as Hedwig slams open the doors of the rock dive to hear strains of Tommy (also Smith) across the way, performing songs she wrote to his stadium full of fans. Smith makes delicious comedy all night of the bitter injustices eating away at Hedwig, and also follows the character to her darker depths.
Although, this production often seems too quick to recover with a gag or a laugh, when, based on what Hedwig is talking about and what she’s been through, the show might be better served by dwelling a beat or two longer in the discomfort.
A lot of Hedwig’s truth is uncomfortable, even disturbing, and it’s fine for the audience to feel it, and live through it. It’s but only a glimpse of her tumultuous yet triumphant journey from “some slip of a girlyboy” singing with his head in the oven, to the “internationally ignored song stylist” still standing taller than the Berlin Wall.
Hedwig and the Angry Inch (★★★★☆) runs through June 22 at Signature Theatre, 4200 Campbell Ave., in Arlington, Va., with Pride Night performances on June 6 and June 20, and Discussion Night performances on May 20 and June 4. Tickets are $40 to $120. Call 703-820-9771, or visit www.sigtheatre.org.
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