Brad Rouse directs the staging, billed as the regional premiere of the Off-Broadway hit. The irreverent and heartfelt rock musical focuses on a transgendered German-born singer and his/her conflicted feelings as he/she navigates emotional, romantic and artistic territory in the United States.

Written by John Cameron Mitchell with music and lyrics by Stephen Trask, Hedwig and the Angry Inch won an Obie Award and an Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Off-Broadway Musical and was made into a feature film.

Rapp's work on Broadway includes roles in George Furth's Precious Sons and the recent revival of You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. He appeared in "A Beautiful Mind" and "Dazed and Confused."

Joining Rapp in Hedwig is Sarah Siplak (of the band Boxstep) in the role of Yitzak and musicians John Purse on guitar, Dan Tomko on bass, Brandon Lowry on keyboards, and A.T. Vish on drums. The design team includes Michael Olich (set), Miguel Huidor (costumes), Howell Binkley (lighting) and Keith Bates (sound).

"In flashbacks and through high-voltage music, the play tells the story of a young boy, Hedwig, growing up in the divided city of Communist Berlin," according to City Theatre production notes. "As a young man Hedwig falls in love with an American serviceman stationed in Germany. In order to marry him and move to the States, Hedwig has a sex change operation that gets botched. The result, the angry inch, leads Hedwig to further existential divisions. Now a she, Hedwig gets dumped by her husband in Kansas. She then meets a young man named Tommy Gnosis and helps him to become a rock superstar. Though again abandoned, in the end Hedwig is able to find the 'other half,' leading to a spectacular rock concert finale." Tickets range $25-$35. City Theatre is at 1300 Bingham and 13th Street, South Side. For reservations or information, call (412) 431-CITY or www.citytheatrecompany.org.