Perhaps I'm going out on a limb, but here goes: of all the venues that will ever stage the outrageous rock musical, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Milwaukee's Cabot Theater is the most unlikely. To give you an idea of the theater's environment, consider that it was lovingly crafted to recreate a 19th-Century European jewel box. It is a gilt-edged, Baroque masterpiece. One can expect to see Shaw, Shakespeare and operas performed on its stage (indeed, that's the typical fare). But the in-your-face appearance of Hedwig (more about him momentarily) could easily put the audience in a time spin. Or, to be more specific, perhaps it's a "time warp," the very kind that energized the gleeful gang in "The Rocky Horror Picture Show."
Hedwig seems to have escaped from a production of "Rocky," as he/she is attired in shiny knee-high platform boots, a frilly cowgirl miniskirt, a blonde wig and enough glittery makeup to warm the heart of Estee Lauder. Like "Rocky's" leader, Dr. Frank N. Furter, Hedwig also has a bizarre backstory. Through a series of songs and non-stop stage patter, the audience learns that Hedwig was born Hedwig Schmidt, an East German who falls in love with an American soldier. The soldier assures Hedwig that he'd be much better off as a girl. However, a botched sex change operation leaves Hedwig in limbo. Still, Hedwig marries and moves to a Kansas trailer park.
Soon divorced and alone, Hedwig struggles to make a living while searching for his "other half." Ultimately, Hedwig again finds love. However, finding his/her true identity may not be that easy.
Once this plot line is firmly in place, actor David Colbert astonishes us as Hedwig. This is a role Colbert knows well, having performed Hedwig in an acclaimed Philadelphia production. Making the character of Hedwig even slightly believable is a tremendous challenge for any actor. Not only does Colbert leap that hurdle, he turns Hedwig from a freak show oddity into a sympathetic character.
It's easy to see how Hedwig could come across as too whiny, too odd or too weird for Milwaukee audiences. (Keep in mind that Hedwig was an Off-Broadway hit and still commands a cult following.) However, director Gareth Hendee deserves credit for keeping this Hedwig at bay. For instance, once audiences become used to Hedwig, he literally reaches out to us, taunting and teasing us in his "girly" style. On several occasions, he leaps off the stage (well, as much as one can leap in four-inch platform boots). At one point, he scolds a well-dressed, 60-ish patron for not knowing what a Sizzler restaurant is. Of course, the poor patron isn't allowed to launch a defense -- Hedwig has already moved on to his next riff.
Backing Hedwig is a punk band known as the "Angry Inch" (the result of Hedwig's botched operation). The band, known in real life as Random Maxx, doesn't make much of a statement here. It plays a dozen or so tunes during the evening (none memorable). So it's probably fortunate that the spotlight stays on the flamboyant Hedwig. The musical's only other character is a low-key grunge rocker, Yitzhak (Tony Inzeo). At first, Yitzhak seems to be just another band member. Then Hedwig introduces Yitzhak as her second husband. But where's the love? Yitzhak wastes no time in deflating Hedwig with frequent put-downs. As Yitzkah, Inzeo doesn't really pique our interest as a counterpoint to Hedwig. This makes the final scene a bit flat. However, Mikhail Moore's sound design and Douglas Vance's lighting expertly capture the appropriate rock n' roll setting. Although patrons are offered earplugs before the show, they aren't necessary. It's Hedwig, not the music, that blows one away.
