'Hedwig' creator's concert is treat for fans
John Cameron Mitchell performs during his "The Origin of Love Tour in Seoul" at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Seoul, Saturday. / Courtesy of Shownote
By Kwon Mee-yoo
John Cameron Mitchell, the creator of "Hedwig and the Angry Inch" showered Korean fans with songs and behind-the-scenes stories of the revolutionary rock musical at his "The Origin of Love Tour in Seoul" concert from Friday to Sunday.
The Seoul concert opened with an arranged rock version of "Aegukga," the national anthem of Korea, and accompanying performer Amber Martin introduced Mitchell quoting a line from "Hedwig" ― "Whether you like it or not, John Cameron Mitchell!"
"Hedwig" has an exceptionally strong fan base in Korea since the musical's premiere in 2005. The story of the philosophical rocker from East Berlin, who moves to Kansas after sex change surgery, has attracted over 500,000 people here. Mitchell visited Korea for the first time in 10 years after his Hedwig concerts in 2007 and 2008 with Korean performers.
Mitchell in glittery drag makeup sang "The Origin of Love," the first song written for the show and explained how he and composer Stephen Trask first met on an airplane and the rich metaphors in the song inspired by the Aristophanes' myth in Plato's "Symposium."
During the concert, passionate “Hedheads,” a term for Hedwig fans, filled one of the largest theaters in Korea who strained their ears to listen to Mitchell's voice.
Singing more songs from the musical such as "Wicked Little Town," "Sugar Daddy," "Wig in a Box" and "Midnight Radio," Mitchell unraveled the show's journey from New York's drag club Squeezebox to Jane Street Theatre off-Broadway to an award-winning Broadway production.
He revealed that at first, successful rock star Tommy Gnosis was the protagonist of the show and Hedwig, whose former name was Hansel before the gender reassignment surgery, was his nanny, but Hedwig soon emerged as the central character in relation to Mitchell's gender identity.
John Cameron Mitchell performs during his "The Origin of Love Tour in Seoul" at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Seoul, Saturday. / Courtesy of Shownote
He unveiled a song cut from the final version of the show "Milford Lake," which describes Tommy's dejection comparing it to a submerged town lost with the creation of a dam.
A cubist, structural costume designed by Erik Bergrin transformed the musician throughout the show, accompanied with Hedwig's iconic wig.
Mitchell also introduced his upcoming project "Anthem: Homunculus" with composer Bryan Weller. The new musical is about a man with brain tumor and will be presented in podcast format, giving the creator more freedom. He sang "The End of Love" from the new project and Martin presented "Love You for Free."
Mitchell also sang a song in Korean ― Jung Hoon-hee's "On the Flower Bed." The musician elaborated that he sang the song 10 years ago and this time he will sing in worse Korean, but his emotions have surely deepened.
He wrapped up the concert with the passionate, explosive "Angry Inch" from "Hedwig," in which the German boy goes through a botched sex exchange operation.
During Friday's concert, after Mitchell disappeared backstage, the Korean audience, who are used to enjoying encore performances at the end of "Hedwig," did not leave the theater until the musician came out twice to confirm that the concert was really over since his throat was dry and he could not sing anymore.
“My mom said I was going to hell for doing Hedwig, but she loves Hedwig now... Just remember, in the end, it's all about love and love will win."