Wig in a Box

Clark joined us Saturday night in downtown Santa Ana for a bite to eat at Memphis. None of us had ever eaten there so we didn't know what to expect. The menu outside listed some Southern dishes like zuni fry bread, southern crab cakes and shellfish jambalaya but threw in some modern twists like the bbq'd pulled pork sliders that Caesar tried or my smoked chicken and brie quesadilla. (Smother that in an avocado and corn mash, and I was in foodie heaven!) And let's not forget the sweet potato fries and the moistest chocolate cake ever to pass my lips.

Delicious as it was, the food at Memphis wasn't was brought the three of us together in the heart of Santa Ana. We had tickets for the closing night performance of Hedwig & the Angry Inch at Theatre Out, a gay-themed theater company deep in the heart of conservative Orange County, California. The theater sat across the street from Memphis, sandwiched between an American Apparel and an empty space with a "For Lease" sign taped to the window. My first pass around the block to find parking and I missed it completely, the place was so small. The 40 seats surrounded the cornered stage on three sides, and each one of those seats was occupied -- with six people forced to stand against the side walls during the entire performance -- by the time the show began.

The band entered one by one, tuning their guitars or tapping the drums, until the drummer decided to lay down along the small outcropping of stage. That's when Yitzhak storms onto the stage, clearing the way for the star of the show, Hedwig, an East German, glam rock-singing presence. (That's the only way to describe her -- a presence, a force to be reckoned with. Strong-willed, gender-blurred thanks to a botched surgery, and completely in charge.) Hedwig and the band remain on stage the entire time, presenting a cabaret-style rock concert interspersed with the story of how Hedwig escaped East Germany and lost at love to both the American GI who helped her (as the young boy Hansel) and a young protégé Tommy Speck.

Darius Rose rocked the role of Hedwig, getting into every song, joking with audience, acting the part of the jilted diva. He was Hedwig. Just amazing. Michelle Hernandez proved a worthy foil to Hedwig as Yitzhak, Hedwig's lover and back-up singer. And the production didn't feel small, even though it was mostly Hedwig, Yitzhak and a 5-piece band. The energy made the room feel bigger, as if Hedwig and the Angry Inch were performing at a huge, 500-seat venue. Such an amazing experience that I was in awe as we stepped into the cool night air after the show.

Image from Theater Out.