Taye Diggs has that Hedwig look! The Broadway veteran stepped into Darren Criss‘ high heels as the new star of Hedwig and the Angry Inch on Wednesday, July 22, and judging by his first night, Diggs is more than comfortable in the role.
The popular rock musical follows transgender East German singer Hedwig (formerly Hansel), who assumes a female identity after a botched sex reassignment surgery. As is traditional for actors playing Hedwig, Diggs got right into character in tiny leather short shorts.
As the actor, 44, explained to Playbill before his debut, he intends to slowly build up to Hedwig‘s wild on-stage look as his tenure goes on. “I bought some lipstick yesterday, and I’m going to slowly start to integrate that — just to see what it’s like to sing and talk and act with a foreign substance on my mouth, makeup. . . .The heels are a lot. That’s where most of the concentration goes during rehearsal,” Diggs told Playbill.
“Before this project, I had never tried them on . . . ever. I don’t know how people do it. I really don’t. I’m very thankful because it really gives your booty a nice little click click, so I enjoy it on the ladies!” he continued. “I enjoy it on myself, too, but I don’t know how people do it, I really don’t, so my hat’s off to all of the high-heel wearers.”
Diggs follows previous Hedwig actors Criss, Neil Patrick Harris, Andrew Rannells, Michael C. Hall, and John Cameron Mitchell.
