Love is immortal because it creates something that wasn’t there…procreation…recreation…sometimes just creation… profound statement coming from Stephen Trask & John Cameron Mitchell’s Hedwig & The Angry Inch. It’s a project seven years in the making but it’s finally arrived on the MET-X Stage, produced by Eric & Nancy Jones, and it’s ready to rock your world, turn you upside-down, and give you all that glittery, wig-wearing goodness that only Hedwig can bring you! Directed by Anna See-Jachowski with Musical Direction by Eric Jones, this ‘anatomically incorrect rock odyssey’ is indeed a journey through rock-n-roll, self-discovery, and reconnecting with one’s own personal spirit.

Scenically, the space thrives as a grungy, underground hole-in-the-wall concert venue for Hedwig. Set Designers Eric Jones and Stephanie Davis set the space to give it a dive-bar feel and the artistry of Nancy Jones and Matt Vance (responsible for the wall mural and graffiti galore) is magnificent to say the least. There’s a pastel modpodge of art-deco style band members on the central pole— Rammstein to be specific— giving ‘art-deco-inspo’ for Hedwig and the set itself it tastefully littered with mannequin heads and wigs, each marking potential points in her life. The most striking of these is the Lt. Cap and basic beige wig and wedding headdress seated right on one of the amps; it makes a show of her life escaping Germany but also how it sits right on the place that makes the most sound; because it became a moment in her life that was definitely loud. The scenic art of Nancy Jones is indescribably beautiful and the painting assist from Matt Vance really ties the show’s aesthetic together along with the work of the rest of the production team.

Hedwig & The Angry Inch is known to have projections; this production takes it a step further. Robin C. Farrell (Film Director/Cinematographer) working alongside Elizabeth Miranda (Animation Artist) and Justin Johnson (Tarot Artist) creates a visual masterpiece to augment the on-stage experience of Hedwig and her band. In addition to the expected animations for numbers like “Origins of Love” (and Miranda’s work there is uniquely exquisite yet reminiscent of the lyrics in a comforting and familiar way) we get a great many Tarot Cards, compliments of Johnson’s fabrications, projected up onto stage-left screen throughout the performance, each coinciding with a stage of Hedwig’s existence as she narrates this tale. Johnson’s work is tragically beautiful, some of those renderings for the cards truly torturous in their artistry to look-up, inspiring a myriad of feelings that are accurately reflected in both the mood of the scene and the tone of the song as they appear on the screen. Having live video footage and actual staged photography (compliments of Robin C. Farrell) is a bonus touch to this production, like watching the flashbacks of someone’s life fleeting before their eyes in their final moments.

Costume Coordinator Rachel Smith and Wig Designer Jesye Havrilla do their best to give Hedwig the utmost glamorous looks for her three costume changes on set. The wig-boa is a personal favorite, but it’s her spike-red pleaser shoes that nail it for me, and Smith deserves props galore for that fan-cape she wears for her grand pomp-n-circumstance entrance. Yitzhak’s finale outfit and wig are also the screaming win of the evening but that has to be a surprise for everyone coming to see it, just know its envious for anyone who likes to look good on stage. And while Hedwig’s main wig does seem to have a little bit of trouble staying permanently affixed to her head throughout the performance, it almost feels like this is a part of the setup; because there is sort of a darker twist that Director Anna See-Jachowski throws over the production, which doesn’t really land until the final moment of the play with Hedwig’s dramatic exit, this little hair-faux-pas feels grittily intentional.

Lighting Designer Will Heyser-Paone works hand-in-hand with the rest of the technical team, including TD Cody James, to create the perfect moments of mood. A lot of Heyser-Paone’s work is deep, cold mood lighting for those more sobering moments during the performance. But there’s also a great deal of hot angry light work— particularly during the titular number that really sets the stage and the overall tone of the show ablaze. One extra-positive note for Heyser-Paone is the fact that the light work never dims or dulls the projections on the screen, meaning both Heyser-Paone and James have figured out exactly how to manipulate the space so that both technical components of this show can be successful.

Sound Designer Ryan Edwards works miracles to keep the sound balance in check. It helps that the drummer (Shayden Jamison) is tucked away at the back of the stage in a sound-proof glass-cage, but Edwards works double to ensure that you’re not completely blown away by the loud rock music coming out of the live band. Led by Musical Director Eric Jones, on guitar— The Angry Inch Band (featuring the aforementioned Jamison and Jones in addition to Ray Shaw on bass, David Weinraub on keys, Andy Wright on lead guitar) the band does a sublime job of keeping tempo, and giving that necessary feel of a grungy, gritty, underground band to keep the show in the realm of reality. The band sounds extraordinary; their playing is epic. Edwards work to keep them from overpowering the vocals is equally impressive, and I have to hand it to Edwards for the striking balance every time the ‘side door’ is opened and the reverb and volume levels that hit from the “Tommy Gnosis” concert across the way at The Weinberg are delivered. The minute that door clicks back into place the sound goes away, no carryover, no bleed-through, flawless execution on those cues.

Uniquely conceptualized, Director Anna See-Jachowski and her production team are telling the tale of Hedwig but in a startling new light. There’s a component of fate mingled into the narrative, a thread of anticipation strung along throughout the anecdotal recollections being recounted for the audience. See-Jachowski utilizes the inclusion of Tarot and live film clips to create this realistic verve and the it comes to a dark and shadowy conclusion if you watch carefully the way Hedwig makes her final exit. There’s a lot to be said for the passion that’s being poured into this project from See-Jachowski and her team; it’s difficult to encapsulate in words when the living passion, understanding, and ultimate devotion to a project just spills wholeheartedly into a production, radiating out like midnight radio waves for the audience to hear, feel, and be moved by. This production of Hedwig & The Angry Inch has that.

Following on in the unique vein of interpretation, Melanie Kurstin’s Yitzhak has these curious and queer moments of tenderness and love toward Hedwig that aren’t always represented in production of Hedwig & The Angry Inch. It’s a startling dynamic to witness because of the more presentational nature of their on-stage relationship but it’s also a refreshing surprise to see that despite the cruelty and relentless animosity that somewhere beneath all of that there are sparks of caring and compassion, concern, and even love, even if its’ mostly generated from Kurstin’s Yitzhak. Providing glorious backup vocals throughout the performance (alongside Eric Jones, who sings in some notes here and there, perfectly blended and harmonized) Kurstin really gets to let loose at the end of “Midnight Radio” and her battlecry-freedom moment is superb. It would take more time to print out all of the brilliant, nuanced moments of both vocality and character interaction that Kurstin presents on the stage than the actual run-time of the show, so in short, go-see-her is the best way to sum this one up.

As the titular character you get a versatile and mercurial enigma out of Lynwood McLeod. Cheeky and confident, but easily bruised and shy; mouthy and maddening but also delicate and easily destroyed; there’s no one solid vein in which this character runs, making you sure she knows who she is at any one time. And that’s the true beauty of the way McLeod presents this tale. Hedwig herself is still struggling to come to terms with her identity; the ‘anatomically incorrect rock odyssey’ voyage that she’s navigating was foisted upon her— it was not a journey she chose or desperately needed to take. There’s much to unpack in that narrative arch and very little time in which to do so (because of the way John Cameron Mitchell and Stephen Trask have structured the show.) McLeod does a sensational job of giving us a glimpse into this torturous existence, this uncertainty of living and attempting to seek out a definition of what makes a person whole; it’s excruciating to watch at times; there are emotionally weighted moments that don’t slap but rather sink you through the floor of the building with the weight of their pathos. But there are also giddy stupid moments that make you giggle and make you tear up joyfully; it’s a glorious amalgamation of Hedwig’s life being narrated by this world-class storyteller. McLeod brings a versatile duality to the stage; sometimes sassy sometimes uncertain and its wild to watch these two driving forces in Hedwig vi for dominance. Vocally, McLeod is exquisite and stupendous, whether raging out to the titular number or doing the more delicate number “Wicked Little Town” or the more seductive teasing song “Sugar Daddy.” The transformation (aided in a black-out-strobe-out-effect by Kurstin) is harrowing and watching McLeod sing that moment completely undone is so striking.

The working camaraderie between McLeod, Kurstin, and the band shows well on stage. Particularly when it comes to those little moments where the band is left standing there like ‘now what’ but not in this furious sort of ‘she does this all the time why are we still here’ kind of way, and more like a ‘we know she needs help but we can’t help her and don’t know what to do but we wish we did’ sort of way. It’s an extraordinary experience from start to finish and getting to see all seven of these performers on stage at once, existing in live-time the way they do for this ‘concert’ she’s performing is truly breathtaking.

Don’t miss your shot at MET-X’s seven-years-in-the-making production of Hedwig & The Angry Inch; it’s stellar and very much needed, particularly at this time in the world.

Running Time: Approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes with no intermission

Hedwig & The Angry Inch plays through August 23^rd 2025 as a production of MET-X on the Maryland Ensemble Main Stage in the Historic FSK Hotel building— 31 W. Patrick street in downtown historic Frederick, MD. For tickets call the box office at (301) 694-4744 or purchase them online.