'Riverdale' to perform 'Hedwig and the Angry Inch' for its annual musical episode in Season 4
The CW confirmed that the annual musical episode of the thriller, 'Riverdale', will air on April 8, 2020, at 8 pm CT. The episode will be called 'Hedwig and the Angry Inch' and its official synopsis reads: "After the previous debacles of Carrie and Heathers, Kevin has decided to revive Riverdale High's tradition of hosting a variety show."
"Musical episodes have become a yearly tradition on Riverdale, but this year, we wanted to try something different," showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa said.
The synopsis continues, "But when Mr. Honey forbids him from performing a number from Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Kevin and our gang rally against their principal — by each performing a number from Hedwig, turning the variety show into a full-fledged musical that, as always, reflects our characters’ inner lives and struggles. Amidst the drama, one forbidden 'showmance' begins to blossom."
The CW also released a graphic for the upcoming episode that shows a sign-up sheet for the school's show.
Past musical shows in Riverdale High brought along unexpected and gruesome murders. Are we expecting another Midge and "Farmie" crime for Jughead Jones (Cole Sprouse), Betty Cooper (Lili Reinhart), Veronica Lodge (Camila Mendes) and Archie Andrews (KJ Apa) to solve?
Sacasa expanded on how the inspiration behind the upcoming musical episode came to fruition, "When we heard that Stephen Trask was a fan of 'Riverdale', we thought, 'Is there a way we can do Hedwig and still have it tie into the stories we're telling?' Doing a deep dive, we figured out a cool way to use classic songs like 'Wicked Little Town' and 'Midnight Radio' that made total sense and are just amazing and iconic. And bonus, Hedwig is literally Cole's favorite musical," Sacasa said.
The hit CW series has already brought 'Carrie: The Musical' and 'Heathers: The Musical' to life in the earlier seasons, and this year we expect nothing but excellence with 'Hedwig and the Angry Inch'.
Originally produced in 1998, the musical revolves around the story of a rock singer that is genderqueer traveling the country following rockstar Tommy Gnosis while he is on tour. The Broadway production of the play in 2014 has a star-studded cast of Neil Patrick Harris, Darren Criss, Michael C Hall and Taye Diggs.
'Riverdale' Season 4 airs on Wednesdays at 8 pm ET on The CW.
The musical episode will air on April 8, 2020, at 8 pm ET on The CW.