Taye Diggs Will Be Broadway’s Next Hedwig, Taye Diggs is going to be the next Hedwig.
The show’s lead producer, David Binder, confirmed on Monday a move that had been rumored for days, saying that Mr. Diggs would take over the title role in “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” on Broadway starting July 22.
Mr. Diggs, a member of the original cast of “Rent,” has also been a costar in films (“How Stella Got Her Groove Back”) and on television (“Private Practice”). He will be the first African-American to play the title character in New York.
Hedwig — an East German musician who has a botched-sex change operation and relocates to Kansas — is inherently a boundary-crossing role. In 1999, the part was played Off Broadway by a woman — Ally Sheedy.
“Taye is fantastic — he has theater cred, he has pop culture cred, he can sing, he can act, he can dance, he’s smart and he’s sexy,” Mr. Binder said. “That’s why we cast him.”
The Broadway production of “Hedwig,” with a book by John Cameron Mitchell and music and lyrics by Stephen Trask, opened in April of 2014 with Neil Patrick Harris in the title role, and won four Tony awards, including one for best musical revival.
The musical’s weekly grosses have dipped at the box office this spring. But Mr. Binder said he remains confident about the show, which now stars Darren Criss, best-known from the Fox series “Glee.”
“Our grosses have been building each week with Darren,” he said. “And it’s a really tough time of year, because people are focused on the new shows, and there are a lot right now. I’m looking forward to the summer, and people coming back to New York for trips and vacations.”
The show’s lead producer, David Binder, confirmed on Monday a move that had been rumored for days, saying that Mr. Diggs would take over the title role in “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” on Broadway starting July 22.
Mr. Diggs, a member of the original cast of “Rent,” has also been a costar in films (“How Stella Got Her Groove Back”) and on television (“Private Practice”). He will be the first African-American to play the title character in New York.
Hedwig — an East German musician who has a botched-sex change operation and relocates to Kansas — is inherently a boundary-crossing role. In 1999, the part was played Off Broadway by a woman — Ally Sheedy.
“Taye is fantastic — he has theater cred, he has pop culture cred, he can sing, he can act, he can dance, he’s smart and he’s sexy,” Mr. Binder said. “That’s why we cast him.”
The Broadway production of “Hedwig,” with a book by John Cameron Mitchell and music and lyrics by Stephen Trask, opened in April of 2014 with Neil Patrick Harris in the title role, and won four Tony awards, including one for best musical revival.
The musical’s weekly grosses have dipped at the box office this spring. But Mr. Binder said he remains confident about the show, which now stars Darren Criss, best-known from the Fox series “Glee.”
“Our grosses have been building each week with Darren,” he said. “And it’s a really tough time of year, because people are focused on the new shows, and there are a lot right now. I’m looking forward to the summer, and people coming back to New York for trips and vacations.”
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