When seeing a play at two different venues, it is difficult not to make comparisons, so bear with me if I compare the production of Hedwig and the Angry Inch at Austin's Zachary Scott Theater and Kitchen Dog Theater's mounting in Dallas and find that the latter does not measure up.
For starters, the cacophonous music is deafening and drowns out Hedwig's songs, a pity as Joey Steakley has a fine singing voice. Steakley command the stage non-stop for an hour and forty-five minutes and performs with great energy and agility, but for the first 70 minutes, we never forget he's Joey Steakley playing Hedwig. Only after 70 minutes into the show, when Steakley relaxes and perches on a step stool to talk with instead of at the audience, does he become Hedwig. Laurie McNair has great stage presence and believability as Yitzhak, Hedwig's "husband"/androgynous back-up singer.
The choreography is unimaginative and borders on overkill, as does the band. However, Tina Parker's staging is well-suited to the rock genre and well-executed. KDT takes lots of liberties with the script, inserting a myriad of local references to spice up the laugh quotient -- for those who keep up with local politics. There's ample laughter from the audience as well as some blank expressions. (It must be said that KDT's Hedwig has been so popular, it's been held over an additional two weeks and will run through October 25, 2003.)
While the audience gave this version a standing ovation, judging from the many members sporting vivid hair colors and a plethora of pierced body parts, I must conclude this was not a mainstream crowd.
