BWW Reviews: SPRING AWAKENING 2nd National Tour Rocks L.A.

It's been just a little more than a year since a touring production of the 8-time Tony® Award-winning musical, SPRING AWAKENING has graced a theater filled with screaming fans here in Southern California. While the touring cast list has certainly changed, many of the same brilliant elements that made this 2007 Tony winner for Best Musical such a rabid, cult hit—especially among younger theatergoers—remain firmly entrenched into this groundbreaking show. Stealthily leaner yet swifter than its previous incarnations, this 2nd National Tour of SPRING AWAKENING, produced by NETworks Presentations, LLC, continues its brief, week-long stop at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood through February 13.

Half accessible period melodrama, half modern day rock opera, SPRING AWAKENING—based on a controversial 1891 play by Frank Wedekind that was, itself, banned by German authorities in its own time for its frank depiction of teenage sexuality—is a series of angst-filled vignettes depicting the hyper-sensitive lives of impressionable teens living within, as the judgmental adults describe it, "liberal-minded times." Though dressed in the garb of its era, the teens here are intentionally meant to mirror modern day youth. As characters wax philosophical about their tragic, German lives, they suddenly break into song—complete with rock arena-ready microphones strategically concealed inside their jackets or on mic stands downstage. They sing—in modern day colloquialisms—about their "junk" and being, well, "totally f***ed."

This splicing of modern rock concert performances in between its 19th Century text is, as I have said in a previous review, a masterstroke of theatrical inventiveness. The songs don't at all feel as if they interrupt the story; in fact, they actually punctuate it. As stand-alone songs, composer Duncan Shiek and lyricist/librettist Steven Sater have crafted such impressively eloquent musical poetry, tinged with infectious pop-rock hooks that sear into you long after you've exhausted the original cast album. As part of the musical as a whole, the score—to steal lyrics from one of the show's songs—is nothing less than "harmony and wisdom." When the ensemble sings together, they produce some really beautiful, melodic harmonies that are surprisingly mature-sounding.

There's is no hiding the fact that SPRING AWAKENING has obvious aspirations to correlate young people's issues to be quite universal—so much so that even the separation of an entire century cannot hide the emotional similarities between these German teens in 1891 and the snarky, Tweet-happy generation of today. Seriously, just substitute risque, ten-page essays with today's status update.

It's really quite a genuis conceit, when you take it all in.

As displayed in this stunningly-scored show, the concerns that troubled teens back in 1891 Germany are, apparently, just as harsh for teens in the eras that followed it—concerns that are, tragically, still so much more present than any of us wishes them to be. Hovering above them like oppressors to their slaves are adult figures (all of whom are played by the same two actors—old people are all the same, you know, LOL) that provide these misunderstood youngsters with a constant barrage of confusion, ridicule, condemnation, and censorship.

Here, grown-ups are manipulative, condescending, and completely oblivious to the sensitivities of youth. Central to this, albeit, haphazardly-actualized narrative (which proves to be the show's most flaw-riddled element) is a triad of the show's most interesting, more developed characters—all of whom desire nothing more than to transcend their current troubles: There's the town hottie, atheist "radical" Melchior (played here by riveting newcomer Christopher Wood), who longs to escape the confines of society's insistence on disavowing critical thought and radical self-expression. Though Melchior is seen as a brilliant scholar, it seems his undeniable genius sparks questionable personal beliefs that are unpopular, especially among the religious "parent-ocracy."

Then there's Melchior's insecure best friend Moritz (Coby Getzug), a manic, overly-sensitive kid with an inability to control his wet dreams, his hair, and his tendencies to sleep through his classes. He seems to mean well with each step, but somehow continually gets bogged down and feels hopeless in the process. In light of recent, tragic events, Moritz would definitely have benefited in seeing his own series of "It Gets Better" video messages. Across the bridge (there are no co-ed schools in this part of the world), Wendla (Elizabeth Judd) is trying desperately to feel grown up by learning all she can about the birds and the bees. Despite her unending pleas, her Mom doesn't want to divulge anything. So, instead, she gets her similarly-misguided friends to fill her in on the "details."

Guiding along this mélange of rock and angst in this 2nd National Tour is the thoughtful, spare staging recreated almost verbatim by Lucy Skilbeck, taking much of her cues from original director Michael Mayer's blueprints (similarly, Bill T. Jones' original choreography is recreated here by JoAnn M. Hunter). Perhaps taking in the old adage, "why tinker with a good thing?" Skilbeck incorporates hardly any noticeable changes into this NETworks version, which will no doubt please the show's fanatical purists. I did notice, however, a seemingly much larger back wall and decorated set that sprawls across the huge downstage back half of the Pantages, which gives it a less-intimate feeling than the previous tour was better at faking (locally at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles and at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa). And, admittedly, I do miss the dreamy, mesmerizing audacity presented by the rising of Melchior on a chain-suspended platform (to symbolize the hayloft where he and Wendla give in to their carnal desires). In this production, the hayloft is instead imagined rather than actually visualized.

At Tuesday's opening night performance of the show, the sound mix also provided a few unfortunate setbacks. Though the band has always played on-stage in every incarnation of this production, they seem so much louder than usual here, drowning the cast in many of the uptempo numbers, leaving the actors inaudible and incomprehensible at times (There are also a few isolated times when the band was playing the music at an alarmingly faster speed than in previous productions). This probably explains why Getzug felt it necessary to scream much of "And Then There Were None" while "eating" the microphone (how else are we to hear his lyrics above the band?), but sounds great during "And Then There Were None" and the finale song in the second act.

And in an unexpected surprise—which may be good or bad, depending on how you look at it—there were a lot of sporadic bursts of laughter from the audience during moments that, in previous productions, have always been more reverent and emotionally wrenching. When did these young people's emotional pain suddenly become punch lines? Yes, indeed there are plenty of moments that are amusing (and some more so thanks to great delivery by this new, well-taught cast), but I found many of these sudden bursts of chuckles from the audience during the quieter moments downright uncomfortable. Even frustrating.

These are just minor gripes, of course, which by no means detract from the overall excellence of this incredible show. Fortunately, much of the kudos for the show's enjoyment—aside from the great music—must be showered onto its exemplary new non-Equity cast. This is certainly a wonderful thing, considering the stellar performers that have filled these characters' shoes in previous productions on Broadway and in the 1st National Tour.

Leading the pack is the amazing Christopher Wood, a brilliant casting find. Walking with great confidence and believable vulnerability, Wood is a riveting actor to watch, right from his first line right up until his final gasp of breath. On top of that, the kid is blessed with an impressive singing voice, bravely peppering his song interpretations with a bit more of a pop lean than previous actors have done with Melchior. As his BFF Moritz, Getzug—previously seen locally in The Lieutenant of Inishmore opposite Star Trek's Chris Pine—does justice to the tortured teen and is endearing to the audience throughout. And as Wendla, Melchior's equally tragic paramour, Judd exudes a girl-next-door innocence with ease (perhaps a bit too much ease—her youthful sweetness made it difficult to watch her get whipped with a stick).

Other standouts include Courtney Markowitz (as Ilse) whose haunting, ethereal delivery of "Blue Wind" in her counterpoint with Getzug's Moritz is just absolutely gorgeous. She also does fine work in a duet with Aliya Bowles (Martha) in the moody "The Dark I Know Well." Though a bit more campy than I would have expected, Devon Stone and Daniel Plimpton (as Hanschen and Ernst, respectively) gets well-earned laughs in their Act 2 duet "The Word of Your Body (Reprise)." And as the sole adults in the cast, Sarah Kleeman and Mark Poppleton do the hardworking heavies with great aplomb. Kleeman, in particular, morphs brilliantly from vampy seductress to stern matriarch within one light cue.

Despite a few weak spots with story and further character development, SPRING AWAKENING still bursts forth with a raw, visceral power, thanks to the piece's overall heightened emotional state as well as the brilliant music that's quite a refreshing, modernist change from the norm in Broadway songbooks. Just experiencing what these kids have to deal with through powerful musical performances—everything from evil professors, rape, incest, suicidal thoughts, burgeoning homosexual feelings, and child abuse—is enough for audience members from varying generations to connect or feel empathy towards their troubling plights.

As I make my way through the maze of people exiting the Pantages on Opening Night, I once again hear a much older patron behind, dear gal, dismissing the show she had just seen as nothing but "a musical for only young people," which is, essentially, the exact type of dismissive phrase that this show is trying to warn against. Just because young people may not have the full capacity to make well-thought-out decisions, does not mean their ideas and feelings should be quickly dismissed or taken for granted. On the contrary, SPRING AWAKENING suggests—as it is sung in the show's final moving song—to "listen to what's in the heart of a child." When you're given the opportunity to peer into what it means to be a teen in an adult-run world, take a moment... and just... listen.

Read BWW's Interview with SPRING AWAKENING's Coby Getzug: HERE.

Photos of the 2nd National Tour of SPRING AWAKENING by Andy Snow.
Main Top: Elizabeth Judd (Wendla) & Christopher Wood (Melchior). Trio Top: Coby Getzug (Moritz).
Middle: The Company. Bottom: Daniel Plimpton (Ernst) & Devon Stone (Hanschen).

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Performances of the NETworks Presentations, LLC National Tour of SPRING AWAKENING at Pantages Theatre continue through February 13, 2011 and are scheduled Tuesday through Friday at 8pm, Saturdays at 2pm and 8pm, and Sundays at 1pm and 6:30pm.

Ticket prices start at $25 and can be purchased online at www.BroadwayLA.org, by phone at 1-800-982-ARTS(2787) or in person at the Pantages box office (opens daily at 10am) and all Ticketmaster outlets.

SPRING AWAKENING will feature A day-of-performance lottery for a limited number of $25 on-stage seats, held daily. Each day, 2½ hours prior to show time, people who present themselves at the Pantages box office have their names placed in a lottery drum and then thirty minutes later, names are drawn for a limited number of on-stage seats at $25 each, cash only. This lottery is available only in-person at the box office, with a limit of two tickets per person. ID is required to purchase the tickets.

The Pantages Theatre is located at 6233 Hollywood Boulevard, just east of Vine Street.

For more information, please visit www.BroadwayLA.org or SPRING AWAKENING's official site at www.SpringAwakening.com.

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