Hey guys, Jana here,

Taye Diggs is not a new name to the boards of Broadway by anyone’s measure. The 43 year old thespian has starred or featured in some of my favorite stage shows like ‘Rent‘, ‘Wicked‘ and ‘Chicago‘. Diggs will soon be adding another credit to his impressive pedigree with ‘Hedwig and the Angry Inch‘ at the Belasco Theatre.

Lead producer for Hedwig confirmed that Diggs is taking over the lead from Darren Criss beginning July 22. Not only is it a perfect marriage of an amazing part and a ridiculously talented performer, but he will also be the first African American to play the enigmatic Hedwig.

Hedwig is an East German musician who is living with a botched sex-change operation who moved to Kansas during the illustrious 1970’s glam-rock era that saw David Bowie and androgyny become the flavor of the day. Hedwig has been played almost always as a cross-dressing role but in 1999 the Brat Pack’s own Ally Sheedy played her. The show opened in 1988 off Broadway, a film version was made then the show went out of sight for a while. Neil Patrick Harris famously starred in the revival which earned four Tony awards, and has been a veritable who’s who of thespians at the helm like Michael C. Hall, author John Cameron Mitchell and Darren Criss, who currently holds the position.