Ladies and Gentleman....Taye Diggs is your next Hedwig — Page 11

"Not for nothing, but houses are always full on opening nights. Friends, industry, paying patrons, papering, etc.
!"

Which is why I said 'hopefully' it was a harbinger. No need to think you have to give BW 101 to others..

Didn't see the show tonight, but heard from a friend he raced out of the (very crowded) stage door a few minutes ago saying he had somewhere to be, and didn't sign anything.

OK so obviously if you've been seeing my posts today you know I'm a huge Taye Diggs fan, so take my comments with that in mind, but what a wonderfully different Hedwig he is. There were some ways in which his take really surprised me. Of all the Hedwigs, his seemed the most sorrowful--in comparison with Criss, whom I saw on Saturday, his relationship with Yitzhak was more gentle and less angry (although of course there are the required angry moments). His Hedwig somehow has a tenderness that I didn't see in the others--almost maternal. It felt to me like this part of the character was an intentional contrast to his raw physicality. (Those guns! Those thighs! That man is pure muscle.) At the same time, he is outwardly strong and crazy fierce. But more than any of the other Hedwigs, I felt that part of the character was covering a real sorrow inside. To me, I coul dfeel the attempts to cover the internal insecurity and pain. (Some of that may be reflecting some real opening night jitters--more on that later--but for me it worked.)

The jokes they've tailored for him are fantastic. I don't want to spoil them here (if folks are interested I can start another thread with spoiler in the title) but they were probably my favorite jokes of the Hedwigs I have seen. They did keep the Idina Menzel joke, which made the audience absolutely go wild.

His voice is much more soulful. His Wicked Little Town is particularly unique and I really loved it. He adds some riffs that really work. I also loved midnight radio, although it's a very different midnight radio--again more riffs and less power. However, I'm sure there will be people who do not care for the way they have changed the songs--particularly the harder rock songs. They have definitely lowered it a bit to fit his voice and he sings it in a different way--he just doesn't have the upper range to do the same arrangement, but his lower range is really strong and quite beautiful. I particularly noticed the changes in Exquisite Corpse which sounded completely different--I suspect some will not like it but to me, that song is just about raw anger so his performance was more important, and I enjoyed it. I definitely felt the slower songs are where he really shines.

His movements on stage are much different too--he is clearly not nearly as flexible. But they actually play on this a little, really hamming it up when Yitzhak takes the sheet music off his foot. Again, I thought it worked with his Hedwig, and he is a good dancer--it's just different moves. He does a cool robot type move and some others they've added that suit his talents very well.

I will admit that the show was definitely not perfect tonight. His delivery was a little slow in some lines, especially in the beginning, and it sometimes seemed like he wasn't 100% sure of his lines in parts. He flubbed a couple, including one where he said (in character) "I f---d up the joke, pretend you didn't hear that." It actually worked out brilliantly because it was right before the drummer messes up the ba-dum-ching, and he said "even though I had to do it again you couldn't get it right--first I f----d up the joke and then you f--- it up again." There were also a couple times the dancing felt a bit stiff and I think he was overthinking. (Definitely seemed like some nerves.) But it's his first night on broadway in like 12 years so I can't fault him, and I expect he'll shake off those jitters soon.

I really felt like this was a different show than the one I saw Saturday. As with any Hedwig, there will be some who love his unique approach and others who hate it. I am in the love camp.

The audience clearly loved him. He got a standing ovation for his entrance, raucous cheers throughout the show, and a HUGE ovation and cheers during curtain call. It was a very different audience, which was really cool to see. Extremely diverse--I mean every age group, race, and walk of life seemed well represented. One of the things I love about Hedwig is each Hedwig seems to draw a very different crowd--it's clear Taye's fan base is pretty broad and spans a lot of demographics, so I hope this is promising for a successful run.

I'll be seeing him again in September so I'm looking forward to seeing him again after he's settled in a bit more! :)

Updated On: 7/22/15 at 11:23 PM

"Didn't see the show tonight, but heard from a friend he raced out of the (very crowded) stage door a few minutes ago saying he had somewhere to be, and didn't sign anything. "

Glad I didn't stay. I almost did, but I figured I'll be back in a few months and would wait until maybe it's not as crowded as opening night and I hear reports from how he is at the stage door.

I wonder if he had this same problem last night during his dress rehearsal.

"As far as I'm aware, the make up is designed to be sweat off/run the more the show progresses, but if it was that much of an issue for him then they definitely need to do something. I wouldn't be surprised if some of the glitter got in his eye or something and that was what was irritating him so badly.
Otherwise, I'm enjoying these early reports and I can't wait to hear how he settles into the role. Looking forward to seeing him at the end of September!"

Oh, definitely, but this was not the normal run off. This was right from the get go--basically it seemed to start during Tear Me Down when he got sweaty.

There was definitely a peak and a valley and another peak. The applause at the beginning felt like welcoming him back from Broadway. The applause at the end was appreciating that he got through it.

I don't disagree it lagged in the book scenes. I am quite optimistic it will tighten up though. I really do think the makeup was a major issue at the top of the show. I've never seen someone's eyes water that much. It only stopped when all the makeup basically finally wore off (and not coincidentally the pace seemed to improve a bit at that point--although it still needed to be picked up).

My comment re the audience was probably imprecise. The audience in the first few rows loved him, but that's always going to be a very enthusiastic crowd. The folks right behind me were screaming the whole time (and some were singing along but that's another story...) but I'm definitely not in a position to comment on what was going on in the rest of the house. I'm sure you had a better perspective on that.

I think he brings a lot to the character and if they fix up the issues could really be great. I still loved it but definitely saw the issues tonight. And I'm biased because I just love him. :)

Hope to hear reports they've fixed those things in the coming days!

I'm settling in for the night with a cocktail, so it seems like this is a great time to run through things from tonight's performance...

It's been discussed on here many times, but Taye has a major presence on stage. I know other Hedwigs have been taller, but when you take Taye's build into consideration, he feels big and that he has presence and almost makes things him see imposing. His Hedwig was very different then that. The way he played her, like Whizzer and Chi have said, was not the wild, almost frantic Hedwig. His Hedwig felt a bit melancholy. When you combine it with some of the clearly nervous mistakes that happened (that Taye really did his best to stay in character with and I can appreciate that), you do feel that this a Hedwig where the inside is very different then what's being seen on the outside. The issues he had with the makeup actually didn't take away from things. It showed more of the breakdown Hedwig is having.

The book scenes need to be tightened up. His pacing isn't quite there yet, but his jokes and wisecracks landed well and were well received by the audience. As others said, there's a few new jokes, and "updating" of a joke/comment used by other Hedwigs. Pretty good chemistry with Yitzhak, considering it's a first show. I can see him and Rebecca working well together.

There are some changes to the music. It's been brought down a few steps to emphasize his strength, which is his lower register. His voice, though, is still very pleasant and smooth. He sounded A-OK for someone who hasn't sung on stage in over a decade. Exquisite Corpse has the most changes and I'm still mixed on it.

My favorite part of the show has always been the last 25 minutes or so where we hear the reprise of Wicked Little Town and then transition into Midnight Radio. Midnight Radio has been adjusted a bit, but I noticed the change in Rebecca's part more. I adore Rebecca, but this sounded much lower then she normally sings.

This was my first time seeing RNJ as Yitzhak and I liked it. Nope, it's not Len Hall's Yitzhak but this works very well. I like the change to the costumes at the end...Lena's, with the ruffles and glitter and butterflies, seemed like it was Yitzhak emerging from the cocoon as a butterfly. Rebecca's was a little tougher and edgier...with the color choices and the winged sleeves, she seemed like the Phoenix rising out of the ashes.

All in all, Taye's doing alright. Like I said there's moments of clear nerves still, but a great beginning on other parts. Didn't seem to bother the crowds--they ate him up and will continue to do so. Very wide range of ages near me and that was nice. I think when he has a week or two under his belt, this will be a much better tighter show. It's clearly on the way. My schedule probably won't allow for another viewing of Taye's Hedwig, so I'm glad I saw it tonight.

Seeing it next Saturday 8/1 will report back.

"If you haven't bought your tickets yet, I would suggest waiting a week or two so he can settle into the role."

Thanks for the update. I'm going mid-August, so that should be enough time for him to settle in a bit...

I bought front row tickets for next Wednesday night (Go discounts!) for my mother for her birthday.

Here's hoping Taye will feel a little more comfortable in the role by then.

Thank you all for your commentary.