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The Origin of Hedwig

On July 29,1994, John Cameron Mitchell introduced the world to the character of Hedwig for the first time at a New York Club.   Four years later, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, the rock musical, opened, and in July of 2001, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, the movie, premiered in New York to rave reviews.  Now in 2009, the musical is still produced all over the world and the film has reached cult status with theater, film, and rock and roll fans worldwide.

For any of this to come into being however, John Cameron Mitchell first had to meet a musician named Stephen Trask on an airplane.  The two immediately became friends and looked for a way to collaborate on a project together.  As Trask explains it, the two would sit around while John told stories from his life. One such story was of a German woman in Kansas who babysat John and also ran a prostitution business out of her trailer home.  When John told me this story about this woman he knew…I was like on the edge of my seat the whole time.  He’s such a good storyteller.  And I said we should do this character and you put a wig on.  From these first inklings of Hedwig, Stephen set to work writing music to tell the story of Hedwig’s life.

Mitchell, as Hedwig, first performed Trask’s songs at a New York nightclub called the Squeezebox in 1994.  As a Squeezebox promoter puts it, The audience immediately loved Hedwig.  The audience immediately related.  From that first night, Hedwig became a regular at the club and used the opportunity to workshop possible songs and material for the musical.  Producer David Binder soon got behind the project and brought Peter Askin on to direct the piece, which Askin described as a mess when he first came onboard.  One of the main things in the beginning was to streamline and clarify what in fact the story was about. (Askin)  In this process, Trask realized that having a backup singer who was female would really enhance the vocals.  From this, the character of Yitzhak was created.

In order to create the most ideal atmosphere for Hedwig, Mitchell and his team built their own theater in an old hotel ballroom in the Meat Packing District.  On February 14, 1998, the newly formed Jane Street Theater opened its doors, and Hedwig and the Angry Inch would run in that theater for the next 2 years.  Mitchell himself performed the role for 10 months.  It was totally a relief to let go of it.  It became too much. (Mitchell)  Several notable actors stepped into the role after Mitchell – Michael Cerveris, Kevin Cahoon, and Ally Sheedy (the first genetic female Hedwig) as well as many others.

At one fateful New York performance, one of the original investors introduced the show to Mike De Luca of New Line Cinema.  The very next day, De Luca bought the rights for the film.  The people behind the film told Mitchell that they wanted him to star in the film and direct it as well.  Hedwig was filmed in Canada, and Mitchell describes the process as not fun at all, it was truly a marathon.  The long, exhausting days paid off, however, as the film premiered at Sundance in 2001, winning both the Audience Award and the Directing Award.

In total, Hedwig and the Angry Inch has won 27 film awards, reaching a cult status among many, and the play continues to be produced worldwide.  Mitchell couldn’st be happier to see Hedwig continuing to live on. Like Hedwig at the end of the film, I don’t really need the wig anymore…But I’m quite happy to give the wig to someone else.

Sources:Whether you Like it or Not, the Story of Hedwig by Laura Nix, and the Internet Movie Database (www.imdb.com)