With its tour halfway to completion, the bombastic musical “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” will be swinging by the Fox Theater this April, just in time for spring break.
Over a year has passed since “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” closed its last production in New York, and the gender-bending production is already gathering new steam as it makes its way to Atlanta as a part of its national tour.
The Georgia-bound production will show off the spunk and tenacity of Euan Morton as Hedwig, the show’s self-proclaimed “boy–girl from East Berlin,” and the vocal talents of Hannah Corneau as the show’s Russian drag queen, Yitzhak.
The show — which was written and produced by John Cameron Mitchell in 1998 — is an eclectic musical in the style of 70s glam rock. The show’s score includes a plethora of power ballads and rock gems reminiscent of David Bowie’s “The Rise of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars.”
In both sound and visual style, “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” evokes rebellious and transgressive themes of art and politics from the 70s and 80s music scene. The production seeks to challenge a modern audience with unabashed questions about gender, sexuality, identity and fame set against the vividly colorful reimagining of the old art-punk scene.
Under the direction of Broadway veteran Michael Mayer, “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” has received glowing reviews. Theater critics have given high praise to the show’s lead actors.
Morton — who has appeared on Broadway in productions such as “Taboo” and “Into the Woods” — has proven to be a prime pick for the production’s lead role. Morton’s Hedwig is full of biting playfulness, bringing the embittered protagonist to life with outrageous jabs at the audience and glittery explosions of character.
According to Gabe Hartwig of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Morton has shown a dramatic command of the stage during the tour.
The unexpected star of the show, however, has been Hannah Corneau. Her musical track record is an impressive one, having performed in the Chicago production of “Les Miserables” in 2015. Corneau brings a reserved and brooding quality to Yitzhak, but breaks out late in the show with a performance that the San Diego Union Tribune described as “gorgeous.” The Chicago Tribune called her performance “extraordinary” and “dazzling.” Mayer himself has described Corneau as “a force of nature” over the course of the tour.
For Broadway fans and theater lovers, “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” is shaping up to be the show of a lifetime as the cast settles into the show and the production continues to gain momentum.
The tour’s halfway point will come to fruition with two shows at the Fox Theatre on April 4 and 5 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online through the Fox Theater’s website with prices starting at $48.50 and maxing out at $128.50 for luxury seats.
