SPOILERS: New Hedwig Jokes

[ChiTheaterFan]

Posted: 7/23/15 at 12:47pm

Thought I'd share the new jokes they added to Hedwig for those who are interested and won't get a chance to see him, but I didn't want to spoil the fun for anyone who will see him and wants to be surprised so I'm posting this in a separate thread.  Here are the ones I can remember.  I'm sure there are more I don't recall right now.  I'd be interested to hear from others who see this show going forward as to whether some of these were ad libbed.

 

-At the very beginning after his entrance he says "Yes, you're in the right place.  I'm black."  He then does a Midwestern-ish accent and impersonates someone holding a ticket and saying "I thought this was German?"  He tells the front row to watch their wallets.

-He calls the wig his upper croissants, and his butt his lower croissants and adds "they're filled with chocolate." 

-After the kiss he asks the person if they like the taste of chocolate on their lips.

-When he was sweating excessively he made some "melted chocolate" jokes.  They could've been ad libbed; I'm not sure.

-He calls the towel his "Whitney rag."  No one heard it at first because he didn't time it very well with the laughs from another joke so he said something like "you didn't hear that did you, I said it's my Whitney rag."

-Because of his excessive sweating he was sliding all over the car.  They hammed it up and made a joke out of this.  Again, I'm not sure if this was planned or not.

-When he licks the stage, he said "tastes like Darren Criss... sweet, but a little cheesy.  Could use some age." 

-When he puts on the fur coat, he sings "movin on up" from the Jeffersons

-Before "Wicked Little Town" he says "We're talking to John Legend's people."  I don't remember who it was before--the Jonas brothers?

Updated On: 7/23/15 at 12:47 PM

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 7/23/15 at 12:51pm

Also:

"Do you like my Tina?" when he emerged in the poofy wig

Didn't he use the n-word at some point?

"We look like Milli Vanilli" - when he and Rebecca were next to each other (then they sort of did the dance)

"This makeup is made for Caucasians." - when it kept running

[ChiTheaterFan]

Posted: 7/23/15 at 12:54pm

"Didn't he use the n-word at some point? "

he said "negro" but I actually worried about it when I heard that because it was pretty covered by laughter and I thought someone might think it was the n-word if they were farther back. 

It was when he makes the joke about his uncle falling of the tower at Auschwitz. After he said "too soon?" he said something like "relax, I'm a negro." 

I didn't hear the n-word.

Updated On: 7/23/15 at 12:54 PM

[ChiTheaterFan]

Posted: 7/23/15 at 12:55pm

""We look like Milli Vanilli" - when he and Rebecca were next to each other (then they sort of did the dance) "

This reminded me of another one I forgot--when he makes fun of Rebecca's dancing he tells her she needs to find her black half. 

[ZAKtheWEST]

Posted: 7/23/15 at 1:13pm

Last night during the section where he is threatening the band about not having passports he said "You don't want to make this n* mad".  A really offputting comment.

[ChiTheaterFan]

Posted: 7/23/15 at 1:17pm

I didn't hear that but I'm disappointed to learn that. 

Updated On: 7/23/15 at 01:17 PM

[quizking101]

Posted: 7/23/15 at 1:38pm

""Before "Wicked Little Town" he says "We're talking to John Legend's people."  I don't remember who it was before--the Jonas brothers?""

Each time I saw it, they mentioned talking to John Mayer's people..

 

[skies]

Posted: 7/23/15 at 1:46pm

"I didn't hear that but I'm disappointed to learn that. "

I guess the premise that Hedwig the character is suppose to be offensive and non PC doesn't always hold water now? 

Again, no right or wrong, but a theatergoer's  personal preference if something crosses an invisible line is an occupational hazard of the ad libbing.

Updated On: 7/23/15 at 01:46 PM

[ChiTheaterFan]

Posted: 7/23/15 at 1:49pm

Fair enough, skies. As a white person I am in no position to be the arbiter of when that word is or is not OK. It just makes me uncomfortable so I don't particular care to hear it. But if it's an artistic choice for an interpretation of the character it's certainly not appropriate for me to judge. 

And I guess it's not necessarily a bad thing for theater to make Some people uncomfortable anyway...

Updated On: 7/23/15 at 01:49 PM

[ChiTheaterFan]

Posted: 7/23/15 at 1:59pm

"
Each time I saw it, they mentioned talking to John Mayer's people..

 "

 Now I do remember that for AR and/or JCM. Pretty sure for Darren it was some teeny bopper but I could be wrong. Did you see it with him? Wouldn't be surprised it was also modified for him but also wouldn't be surprised if I am totally misremembering and he said john Mayer too. 

[HedwigInch]

Posted: 7/23/15 at 2:11pm

Darren's Hedwig said they are talking to Nick Jonas' people. In Darren's final show he used himself and said they are talking to Darren Criss' people.

[quizking101]

Posted: 7/23/15 at 2:59pm

"Now I do remember that for AR and/or JCM. Pretty sure for Darren it was some teeny bopper but I could be wrong. Did you see it with him? Wouldn't be surprised it was also modified for him but also wouldn't be surprised if I am totally misremembering and he said john Mayer too."

I saw NPH, Michael C. Hall, and John Cameron Mitchell, and each of them said John Mayer.

 

[Glittergrrl]

Posted: 7/23/15 at 10:53pm

At the Jane, it was Phil Collins' people, but it's John Mayer on Boradway.

[ChiTheaterFan]

Posted: 7/23/15 at 11:46pm

"Darren's Hedwig said they are talking to Nick Jonas' people. In Darren's final show he used himself and said they are talking to Darren Criss' people."

 So I wasn't crazy!  With Darren I think Nick Jonas was much funnier than John Mayer because of Darren's age. But John Mayer would've worked well for all the prior hedwigs. And John Legend for Taye makes sense, although I feel like there could be funnier choices (but I can't think of any so I should probably just shut up :)).  At any rate, glad they're changing it up for the new hedwigs.

[Phan2]

Posted: 7/23/15 at 11:57pm

Thanks for starting this thread, ChiTheaterFan.   How wonderful that they incorporated a lot of new jokes for Taye. 

[ChiTheaterFan]

Posted: 7/24/15 at 12:06am

No problem!  I'm enjoying remembering them. :)

just remembered one more. In the opening before (I think) saying "you're in the right place, I'm black" mentioned in my original post, he said something like "look at all the pasty white people. It's OK. I like white people."

I may be misremembering the order. He looked at me during one of those lines and I think I momentarily blacked out. 

 

 

[TrChSpHa]

Posted: 7/24/15 at 12:07am

Tonight he made a lot of jokes at the expense of his "white audience."

Sauerkraut and fried chicken -- "Because I'm a sour Kraut, and fried chicken because I'm black."

At one point he accidentally(?) slipped into a Jamaican accent, which the audience loved. Also, he exclaims that the drummer "got his groove back" when he successfully does the rimshot after a joke.

He tells Yitzhak to go "find the black part of himself" when he's off-rhythm during the Milli Vanilli dance bit.