Written by Larissa Villers Ferre
Winter is a dreary, lonely few months at the beginning of every year. Sometimes we feel an ache, knowing there is more out there for us in the sunshine of spring. Our senses are teased and titillated with the changing sights, smells, sounds, and sensations the change of seasons brings. Take yourself back to the days of your adolescence around the time your body began to feel things it had never felt, your mind began to dream of things you didn’t understand, and you started feeling desires to be in the companionship of a certain girl or boy in a way you didn’t quite understand. The winter of the body had turned into spring.
Spring Awakening, being produced at Midvale Main Street Theatre, is an aptly named rock musical based on the banned 1891 German play of the same title. Child abuse, rape, suicide, incest, abortion, and homosexuality are all contributors to the banning of the play and the deep substance of the production. Set in 19th-century Germany, one may think the time-period’s approach to a sexual awakening of youth to be antiquated, but it is alarmingly frightening how true the show resonates with the youth of today.
As I write this, I think of how perhaps I shouldn’t use a word like “sexual” because it makes audiences and readers uncomfortable. However, the discomfort of this topic is exactly what has lead to the plague of misunderstanding regarding the wonderful gifts of life, creation, and sexuality that our creator gave us. Instead, we have turned the mere topic of intimacy into something shameful and to be avoided. If an audience member learns nothing else, I hope they learn that they are not alone in their struggles and that we need to be open in our communications with our children to hopefully bring about a much-needed understanding and change.
First-time director, Cassidy Ross, put together an amazing group of production team and cast members, orchestrating a great blend of creative vision. Your eyes are immediately treated to one of Sean McLaughlin’s most bright and beautiful set designs. He has lined most of the stage with old wood slats, even creating a tree. His set works perfectly in conjunction with the lighting design of Jennifer Hairr to help us feel the innocence and darkness at integral times. In one number, the flashing of the lights was a little much, but definitely conveyed chaos. Aaron Ford’s choreography is clean and stylistic in a way that adds energy, but does not detract from the overall feel of the show. The only weak points for me, technically, were the over-modulated mic’s of Wendla and Georg.
The characters are introduced to us in a schoolroom setting or frolicking about town. As with most shows, the audience needs a few songs to warm up to the actors and feel the energy of the show. We meet Wendla (Erica Renee Smith) as she is trying to get her mother (Kelsey Lyn Hoskins) to tell her how babies are made. Hoskins portrayed the mother as amused in an almost comical way, which I enjoyed, but that amusement didn’t quite mesh with her harsh treatment of her daughter later in the show. For me and my company, the show finally clicked with the song, “Touch Me.” The actresses rocking out at the very beginning of the show had the staging and movement energy, yet something wasn’t quite clicking – like if you took classical singing and tried to set it to rock music. Thankfully, that was the only song that felt that way. In contrast, the beautiful vocals transferred well in the strongest vocal song of the show, “Purple Summer.”
I will not spoil the show for those who have yet to experience it, but there is a scene that had me fighting back tears as much as any show ever has shortly after intermission. The blackout after this particular scene seemed intentionally longer than the typical split-second changes to let the audience have a moment to reflect. You could have heard a pin drop as sniffles and tears swept through the darkness.
For me and my company, the stand-out performance (if there can be one amongst this group) of the evening was Brock Dalgleish as Moritz. You can see he is slightly neurotic at the beginning of the show, which transitions into a slow and steady spiral downward until he finally breaks. His crystalline vocals and physical antics contributed to his powerful and believable lost soul performance. Even down to the sparkle in his eye, you could see this character’s fear-based yearning for some sort of truth and hope in his existence.
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Carolyn Crow is also forever professional and haunting in her performances, not the least of which is Martha, a young girl suffering the full span of abuse from her father. You can see the hurt, anger, and fear in her eyes as she shares her story, yet her longing to hold onto the innocence of youth and childhood of her friends. Thomas Kulkus as Georg filled the house with soaring tenor notes when he wasn’t creating cleverly crafted comic relief with as little as the widening of an eye. Smith’s Wendla shows us naivete in her sheltered life and how her innocence leads to her downfall, all the while not understanding what she had even done wrong. Cody Jensen is the brave, yet stoic leader, Melchior. The youth look to him because he is wise beyond his years and not tied down with the traditional beliefs of society, while the adults look to him as a shining, intellectual hope for their future. Jensen’s voice and acting fit his role so impeccably that I cannot imagine much better talent or fit exists.
Each and every actor deserves accolades for their performances, as I honestly felt that, even if an audience member might have made a different acting decision, there was not a weak player among them. Filling out the cast is: Jim Dale as Adult Man, Allie Duke as Ilse, Ashlee Brereton as Anna, Garrett Grigg as Ernst, Kelsey Lyn Hoskins as Adult Woman, Michael Anthony Howell as Otto, Terry Lee McGriff as Hanschen, and Mikael Short as Thea.
Audiences need to be aware of the adult language and sexual content of Spring Awakening – if a song titled, “Totally F***ed,” (the best overall song performance in the show) makes you squirm, then this show is not for you. I typically don’t gravitate towards “edgy,” but I absolutely recommend this show. In speaking with theater owner, Tammy Ross, she shared with me that she does blockbuster, family friendly sell-out shows like Hairspray so that she can also produce the non-Utah traditional pieces like Spring Awakening and Next to Normal.
Everyone will find something that resonates within them regarding the struggle of these characters. You will be brought to the point of tears or goosebumps because of these actors and what they are sharing with you. Spring Awakening helps you realize the unashamed concerns of youth, and, as Melchior states, “Shame is nothing but a product of education.”
Spring Awakening performs at 7:00 pm on June 19, 20, 21, 26, 27, 28, and 6:00 pm on June 22. Tickets are $15 for general admission from their website or at the box office or $12 for students at the box office one hour before showtime.
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