404 – Hedwig and the Angry Inch

What this episode covers

Celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, Hedwig and the Angry Inch is a musical like no other. A Off-Broadway smash in 1998 from creators John Cameron Mitchell and Stephen Trask, Mitchell also starred as the titular volatile rocker who escaped East Berlin after a forced surgery to live as a woman, only to have her songs stolen by the protege she takes under her wing. For the film, Mitchell also took over directing duties, earning several Breakthrough Director honors for the beloved film, earning a new legion of fans. This episode, we talk about our origins with the film/musical and how the film shared the summer with another rule-breaking musical, Moulin Rouge!. We also discuss JCM’s rangy directorial output, Miriam Shor’s performance as Yitzhak, and the starry Broadway revival that came a decade later. Topics also include the 2001 Sundance Film Festival, Andrea Martin, and costume designer Arianne Phillips.

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