OGDEN — As the season opener, Weber State University Theatre Department chose Spring Awakening, the 2006 Broadway musical with a book and lyrics by Steven Slater and music by Duncan Sheik. It is based on a 1890s German play by the same name. The play was quite scandalous in the 1890s and was banned when it first came out because of the sensitive subject matter. The show covers many mature themes and sexual content which are still intense and triggering for modern audiences. Director Andrew Lewis, as head of the Weber State Theatre program, has included in advertising a content advisory noting the show is for audiences 17+. This is very wise.
The story follows several young people in Germany who are trying to understand the urges happening to them while also facing the pressures of school and everyday life. While the original play was written over 130 years ago, the themes remain shockingly and sadly relevant today. It is also a mentally triggering show, with themes of suicide, teen pregnancy, death, loss, and abuse. Making sure that audiences are aware of this when choosing to see the production is very important and relevant.
Director Lewis and the entire cast of students did a wonderful job tackling the difficult topics with a beautiful and compassionate understanding. The musical adaption of Spring Awakening is known for taking the 1890s storyline and adding modern day music, and the way the production brought the story to life shows a lot of careful thought. Student costume designer Casey Sadequist styles the adult characters in traditional 1890s costumes, and the students in modern school uniforms and shoes. This makes a great statement showing a division between the adults and the teenagers. This division is stark at first, but really emphasizes the point that the adults are trying to keep the children in the dark, and those actions are harmful, not helpful. This costume choice was impressively impactful on the story, and it’s a good reminder why it is great to attend university productions, where the magic of theatre meets the beauty of education.
The lighting design, by Caden Schaefer, was equally as impressive. Spring Awakening operates with songs sounding like a rock concert, and the spot lights and back lighting supported the concert like feel. The transition from song to scene was interesting, but not jarring. These are challenging transitions, and the design was quite smooth.
All of the players did a great job managing the challenging subject matter. Julia Green as Wendla Bergman faces the challenge portraying a curious and interested young woman. Wendla’s mother, played by Hannah Mariah Church(who plays all the adult women), chooses to shelter her and give her limited information about the facts of life. Green plays the innocence in a believable way, not in an annoying way. Ezekiel Binkerd as Melchior Gabor plays the rebellious character who falls for Wendla and also “corrupts” her. Binkerd and Green play well off each other, and the careful direction from Lewis shows a good deal of care about the difficult subject matter. One of the best lines Green delivers at a pivotal moment is when Wendla looks at her mother and says “Why didn’t you tell me everything?” At another moment in the show, Mariah Church, playing a different adult, states an important point “Are we so afraid of the truth?” Sometimes I wonder when we look to censor or cut programs or funding if that is the case – that we are afraid of the truth.
In the song “The Dark I Know Well”, Kelsey Turner, playing Martha Bessell, and Bee Higgins, playing Ilse Neuman, truly show the depth of character and the difficultly of tackling mature themes. The beautiful vocals remained impressive throughout the show, guided by music director Kenneth Plain, and guided the emotion and characterization. Seeing and hearing the pain about abuse through the movement and vocals was a strong reflection of how much these students learn through their education. As a person who has dealt with abuse and talks to people who have been abused daily, I was deeply moved by these actresses in particular.
The set design by Cully Long was intriguing. Many props were placed throughout the sides of the stage, showing a lot of educational necessities such as books, papers, quills, and other things that might be used, These learning centered props create an interesting contrast to how much the adults withheld when asked questions like “Where do babies come from?”
The choreography, by Michael Hernandez, shows a lot of pent-up frustration and anger, especially in “The Bitch of Living” and “Totally F#$ed.” These musical numbers demand a level of anger, and so it was pleasantly surprising to also see beautiful movement in songs like “Touch Me” and “Song of Purple Summer”. This contrast showed how Hernandez and Lewis looked to the full use of movement and emotion in the production, not just anger and angst.
The music composer Duncan Sheik passed away on September 17th of this year. Near the end of the production, the song “Those You’ve Known” seemed like a fitting tribute to a life well lived as I could visualize the composer walking behind these students showcasing his work. Spring Awakening is a challenging and mature musical with a forever relevant story performed wonderfully well by these young artists at Weber State. While our nation seems to still debate if the arts are worth inclusion in higher education, perhaps the best way showing their worth is choosing to attend university productions, especially those with triggering and thought provoking subjects.
MORE INFO: Spring Awakening plays October 7-10th at 7pm with a matinee on the 10th at 2pm. There is an ASL interpreted performance on the 8th. All performances are at the Eccles Theatre in the Val A. Browning Center on the Weber State University Campus (3950 West Campus Dr, Ogden, UT 84408). Tickets are $15-20. For more information see https://www.weber.edu/theatre/
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