The concept of the stage production is that the audience is watching genderqueer rock singer hedwig robinsons musical act as she follows rockstar tommy gnosis much more successful tour around the country. Hedwig and the angry inch recounts hedwig s journey to find her soul mate. The most wholly rounded piece of rock theatre we have seen in years david bowie hedwig and the angry inch is an everyday tale of gummi bears, betrayal, a botched sex change operation, and the quest to find true love. Abstract hedwig and the angry inch, a musical film about a queer punk rocker, alludes to a part of platos symposium in which aristophanes narrates a mystical origin of love. Jun 16, 2014 the show hedwig and the angry inch was created by friends steven trask and john cameron mitchell in the mid1990s, when mitchell wanted to write a show based on platos symposium and asked. It hasnt always been blindingly obvious that hedwig and the angry inch is a riff on plato s symposium. The pursuit of eros in platos symposium and hedwig and the. Sypnosis hedwig and the angry inch is a rock concert musical in which our protagonist, hedwig, a genderqueer performer, alternates between songs and monologues which combine to. Aug 20, 2009 the pursuit of eros in platos symposium and hedwig and the angry inch the pursuit of eros in platos symposium and hedwig and the angry inch sypniewski, holly 20090820 00.
Ticket information hedwig and the angry inch is the genrebending, fourthwallsmashing musical sensation, with a pulsing score and electrifying performances, that tells the story of one of the most unique characters to ever hit the stage. Aug 20, 2009 john cameron mitchells film hedwig and the angry inch 2001 traces the sexual and spiritual journey of a partially transgendered rock star searching for her other half. Most recently, john cameron mitchells rock musical hedwig and the angry inch borrows elements of platos symposium to tell the story of hedwigs search for love and happiness after suffering a botched sexchange operation. But the greek fable it offers about the origin of love is. I recommend the movie if you cant go see the play hedwig and the angry inch by john cameron mitchel 2001 the world is better when the strangest things seem suddenly routine see more. Hedwig and the angry inch honestly this movie speaks to me on an emotional level, the message is great. The aim of this commentary is to make platos symposium as accessible as possible to intermediatelevel greek readers so that they may experience the joy, insight, and lasting influence that comes from reading some of the greatest works in classical antiquity in the original greek. A hardcharging song cycle and a tender character study, hedwig and the angry inch is a tribute to the transcendent power of rock and roll. Hedwig and the angry inch and platos symposium bryan kimbutler, vassar college at the heart of the recent film hedwig and the angry inch 2001 is the question of love.
Hedwig and the angry inch is a film overflowing with ambiguity, from the unclear gender identities of its cast, to song lyrics with varying interpretations, to its entire message overall. Hedwig and the angry inch the origin of love lyrics. From symposium to hedwig and the angry inch vickie liang. Sep 07, 2017 as they were powerful and unruly and threatening to scale the heavens, zeus the king of the gods devised to cut them into two like a sorbapple which is halved for pickling, and even. Hedwig and the angry inch is a 2001 american musical comedydrama film written for the screen and directed by john cameron mitchell. A stage play adapted and directed by, as well as starring, john cameron mitchell, hedwig has become wellknown as a queer film, exploring issues of gender, sexuality. The story draws on mitchells life as the child of a u. Hedwig and the angry inch musical frankfurt synopsis. Hedwig and the angry inch is a rock musical with music and lyrics by stephen trask and a book by john cameron mitchell. Ladies and gentlemen, whether you like it or not hedwig and the angry inch is back in new york city. By sandy staggs drama critic when jonathan lewis and anna lyles set out to launch the synthesis experiment in asheville, their aim was to establish an antiestablishment theatre. The intensity is sometimes lacking in hedwig and the. Nov, 2014 this theory is featured and explored in the musical film hedwig and the angry inch 2001, which tells the story of a transexual woman, hedwig, who struggles with her art, music, and search for love.
Hedwig in a box view topic images of hedwig s tattoo in the film. Hedwig schmidt, a fourthwall smashing east german rock n roll goddess who also happens to be the victim of a botched sexchange operation, which has left her with just an angry inch. As articulated by the myth of aristophanes from platos symposium, hedwig aspires to find her other half in. The film hedwig and the angry inch shows a strong correlation with platos symposium in terms of hedwigs story and the idea of love. Reading and queering plato in hedwig and the angry inch. Hedwig and the angry inch bluray disc details highdef. During the stage run of hedwig and the angry inch, hundreds of hedheads popped up in the audience, sporting foam versions of hedwig s signature blonde wings and singing along to trasks catchy. May 16, 2007 but hedwig and the angry inch caught me totally offguard. The pursuit of eros in platos symposium and hedwig and the angry inch the pursuit of eros in platos symposium and hedwig and the angry inch sypniewski, holly 20090820 00.
Start reading hedwig and the angry inch songbook on your kindle in under a minute. Hedwig and the angry inch by stephen trask and john. Hedwig and the angry inch is a 2001 american musical comedydrama film written for the. Based on mitchells and stephen trasks stage musical hedwig and the angry inch, it accompanies hedwig robinson, an. The origin of love hedwig and the angry inch youtube. Herr april 15, 2015 symbolism in hedwig and the angry inch hedwig and the angry inch, produced and created by john cameron mitchell is a unique story with many underlying themes, many of which relate to ideas of gender identity, sexuality, and how fluid both concepts can be. Seems like a fanciful dream, but the origin of origin of love is plato s symposium, in which aristophanes expounds on his theories regarding love. Hedwig and the angry inch, up close and personal at theo.
And it serves to introduce this rock musical about a slip. The film is completely unapologetic in its ambivalence towards concepts of gender. Hedwig and the angry inch and platos symposium movies. The notion of divided souls led playwright and actor john cameron. The music is called origin of love from the movie hedwig and the angry inch. Brilliantly innovative and oddly endearing, hedwig and the angry inch inspired by plato s symposium is the story of internationally ignored song stylist hedwig schmidt, the victim of a gruesomely botched sexchange operation, as dazzlingly recounted by hedwig nee hansel herself in the form of a lounge act, backed by the rock band the angry. The origin of love is a song from the stage show hedwig and the angry inch and subsequent film.
Brilliantly innovative and oddly endearing, hedwig and the angry inch inspired by plato s symposium is the story of internationally ignored song stylist hedwig schmidt, the victim of a gruesomely botched sexchange operation, as dazzlingly recounted by hedwig nee hansel herself in the form of a lounge act, backed by the rock band the. Hedwig and the angry inch 2001 blu ray compare prices and. But first, lets have a little history, what say you. Aristophanes speech specifically influenced parts of the movie hedwig and the angry inch, about a fictional rock band headed by an east german transgender singer. Its from symposium by plato and was written around 400 bc. In hedwig and the angry inch, the song origin of love references platos symposium thus making it an allusion. Hedwig and the angry inch is at ephrata performing arts. And by debuting with hedwig and the angry inch at the toy boat community art space, they have succeeded. Various answers were already given about 2000 years ago in platos symposium, where there were altogether seven speeches on different ideas of love offered by greek philosophers who had joined the great tragedian, agathon, for a drinking party at. The pursuit of eros in platos symposium and hedwig and the angry inch. I love the scene where hedwig the adult reminisces about how his mother forced him to put his head in the oven if he wanted to sing when he was a child. I figure any movie advertised as the next rocky horror has to have something going for it. John cameron mitchells film hedwig and the angry inch 2001 traces the sexual and spiritual journey of a partially transgendered rock star searching for her other half.
The origin of love hedwig acoustic cover lena hall. However, trask didnt make up the stuff in this song. Platos symposium is a conversation recalled haphazardly, years after it happened. Based on platos symposium, specifically aristophanes speech about love. How i met your mother star and tony host extraordinaire neil patrick harris is stepping into. Based on mitchell s and stephen trask s stage musical hedwig and the angry inch, it accompanies hedwig robinson, an east german trans woman rock singer. In the play and film hedwig and the angry inch, one of the most wellknown songs is the origin of love, which plays on the ideas laid out in plato s symposium. Hedwig and the angry inch as the first philosophical writing on love in western literature, it is important that in the symposium plato praises male, homosexual love as the purest, real kind of love. Matt rodin takes on the iconic hedwig and the angry inch. Hedwig gives him a new name, tommy gnosis, and they write music together. Next section related links previous section sexuality in platos symposium and ancient greece buy study guide. This mythmade into a cartoon within the film by emily hubleyis the spine of hedwig and the angry inch. Five fun facts you need to know about hedwig and the angry inch.
The music is called origin of love from the movie hedwig and. Jun 26, 2000 hedwig and the angry inch is a play that needs to be seen to be appreciated. The origin of love lyrics hedwig and the angry inch the origin of love. The pursuit of eros in plato s symposium and hedwig and the angry inch created date. Hedwig and the angry inch freud uses the myth of the three human figures taken from platos symposium to illustrate the human instinct to need to return to a former state, which he calls the death drive, which, as can be seen by the myth, is fueled by the libido of. The pursuit of eros in platos symposium and hedwig and. The musical hedwig and the angry inch, while not explicitly grappling with theology of the body. This theory is featured and explored in the musical film hedwig and the angry inch 2001, which tells the story of a transexual woman, hedwig, who struggles with her art, music, and search for love. But hedwig and the angry inch caught me totally offguard. But the greek fable it offers about the origin of love is at the heart of this hardrock. Hedwig is separated from her biological gender, as well as from male love objects luther and tommy, who did her wrong. This isnt because hedwig is amorphous or lacking in incident, but rather because a description of the story and character details tends to seem at odds with the actual tone.
Singing hedwig s songs, tommy becomes an overnight sensation while hedwig, with his new band the angry inch, launches her own tour. From origin of love song derived from plato s symposium. Inside hedwig and the angry inch background and analysis by scott miller she makes her entrance like a star dying to be born goosestepping through the audience with the arrogant aplomb of marlene dietrich and jim morrison. In the song the origin of love written by stephen trask hedwig draws on aristophanes story of the original race of globular creatures to tell. A bright, shining star illuminates the stage at the onyx theatre as cory benway reprises the role of transgender songstress hedwig in the musical hedwig and the angry inch presented by offstrip. Hedwig and the angry inch 2001 the criterion collection.
The synthesis experiment debuts with electric hedwig. Her pursuit of erotic completion is depicted explicitly in the origin of love, a song based on a creation myth told only in platos symposium. Stephen trask wrote the song, which is based on a story from plato s symposium. Platos symposium and the angry inch smaller adventure. In things fall apart, they describe okonkwos fame growing like a wild bushfire. The musical follows hedwig schmidt, a genderqueer east german singer of a fictional rock and roll band. The origin of love is hedwigs version of a creation story, specifically an adaptation of platos symposium. Origin of love recounts that greek myth, as referred to in aristophanes speech in plato s symposium. May 27, 2014 hedwig and the angry inch, the best rock musical ever rolling stone follows the journey of internationally ignored song stylist hedwig schmidt, victim of a botched sexchange operation, as dazzlingly recounted by hedwig nee hansel herself in the form of a lounge act, backed by the rockband the angry inch, and transported to the. All is bliss, until tommy discovers the angry inch and also hits the road. In the symposium, a party is being held in which a series of speeches are given paying homage to eros, the greek god of love. Symposium by plato aristophanes influence in contemporary. Throughout the film, hedwig refers to aristophanes speech in platos symposium. Hedwig and the angry inch film directed by john cameron mitchell based on hedwig and the angry inch by stephen trask john cameron mitchell july 20, 2001 hedwig and the angry inch is a 2001 american musical comedydrama film written for the screen and directed by john cameron mitchell.
How hedwig transcends gender and sexual limitations. Hedwig and the angry inch criterion collection bluray zavvi. Zander gawn stars as the transgender punk rocker hedwig in the genderbent musical hedwig and the angry inch opening at the ephrata performing arts center on thursday, october 18, 2018. Hedwig and the angry inch a portland center stage at. The pursuit of eros in platos symposium and hedwig and the angry inch article in international journal of the classical tradition 154. Cover by eric skillman, based on a photo by miguel villalobos. Read aristophanes speech in the book and youll see the explanation of the three sexes, etc. Hedwig and the angry inch, a musical film about a queer punk rocker, alludes to a part of platos symposium in which aristophanes narrates a mystical origin of love. Hedwig and the angry inch 2001 bluray criterion collection.
The desire for beauty moves from physical to intellectual love. Hedwig and the angry inch stephen trask, john cameron. John cameron mitchell on the ageless appeal of hedwig. Here, writer stephen trask says he wrote the lyrics to read like a picture book. Hedwig and the angry inch may very well be the next rocky horror midnight movie. Playguide hedwig and the angry inch by milwaukee rep issuu. Hedwig s search for love is a pursuit for her other half, just like platos idea of love. But it is also a retelling and revision of the ideas in the symposium. Hedwigs search for love is a pursuit for her other half, just like platos idea of love. Symposium by plato aristophanes influence in contemporary times. Platos symposium readily lends itself to gay identification, 1 yet its status as a queer text is. This animation was based on plato s symposium, specifically aristophanes speech about love.
Review by david cote transitioning from child star to adult gay icon, sitcom prince and socialmedia wizard, neil patrick harris always seemed to be a cultural rock star. Plato on love hedwig and the angry inch phl250 aesthetics. Playguide hedwig and the angry inch by milwaukee rep. Plato s symposium is a conversation recalled haphazardly, years after it happened. This love story comes to you from steven trask and the movie version of hedwig and the angry inch. This brings to mind the taoist concept of yin and yang, along with carl jungs idea of animus and anima, though trasks lyrics are drawn from homosexual greek philosopher platos symposium. And hedwig and the angry inch s thats the bands name as well as the films appearance outside the menses festival next to the portopotties. Hedwig and the angry inch buy study guide as the first philosophical writing on love in western literature, it is important that in the symposium plato praises male, homosexual love as the purest, real kind of love. I have never seen it in performance, but after listening to, and liking, the recent broadway cast album i decided i needed to know the story and what the heck was going on. December 2009 international journal of the classical tradition. Hedwig and the angry inch illuminates stage at onyx theatre. New 4k digital restoration, supervised by director john cameron mitchell and cinematographer frank demarco, with 5. Hedwig and the angry inch and plato s theory of bisexuality image credit.