Rape, illegal abortion, the "sin" of homosexuality, teenage suicide and abusive parents are subjects with which we are all unfortunately familiar these days.
For some, these words are mere abstractions. Yet for others, these subjects represent real problems, be they physical or political. As pertinent as they are today, these are issues which have been around for ages.
More than a century ago, German playwright Frank Wedekind covered these topics in his play "Spring Awakening." The 1891 play was banned in Germany because it was seen as too brazen in the way it approached such difficult subjects.
115 years later, writer Steven Sater – a jack-of-all-trades who has authored plays, musicals, television shows and even lyrics for songs – revived Wedekind's work.
In collaboration with alt-rocker Duncan Sheik, with whom Sater worked on such projects as "Umbrage," "Nero" and "The Nightingale," Sater adapted "Spring Awakening" into a musical.
College sophomore Sophie Bell directed AdHoc's production of "Spring Awakening," which premiered Thursday, Nov. 1 at 7:30 p.m. in the Black Box Theater of Emory's Burlington Road Building. The show ran throughout the weekend and will run again Nov. 7-10 at 7:30 p.m. each night.
Upon entering the small space, which seats approximately 50 (almost all of which were filled on opening night), one cannot help but notice the set: a large silvery net reminiscent of prison bars, dividing the stage in two and made entirely of duct tape.
Other than this net, a table similarly adorned with duct tape, and a few chairs which actors brought with them as they entered and exited, the space was barren. The set complements the play's generally sober mood punctuated by bouts of frustration and angst.
The first act opens with College senior and AdHoc president Rachel DelGaudio's character Wendla, the female lead. Her solo about birth, "Mama Who Bore Me," begins the show on a high note.
While the band occasionally drowns out DelGaudio's relatively small voice, she sings well and her performance is convincing throughout the show – no small feat considering she mimes having sex on stage. Indeed, the end of the first act is climactic in more ways than one.
The best performance in the show is that of College junior CJ Shepard who plays the male lead Melchior. Songs such as "Mirror," "Left Behind" and "Totally F---ed" display Shepard's impressive vocal range.
Shepard is well-cast, portraying a rebellious, teenaged, budding intellectual as though he may have been one himself five or six years ago.
While Melchior's responsibility for the unfortunate events of the story remains ambiguous, Shepard's portrayal is sympathetic enough to tip the scales in Melchior's favor.
The secondary roles of Moritz (Oxford College freshman Tyler Moon) and Ilse (College sophomore Katy Heath) are strong supporting characters. Although Moon's voice starts off shaky, he soon comes into his own; regardless, his dramatic performance alone is enough to redeem himself.
Ilse does not have much of a presence until the second act, which is unfortunate considering Heath plays the character well.
Her first monologue and solo piece, "Blue Wind," makes one wish she had a more involved role prior to the second half.
The show's costumes reflect the period in which the original play was written. In contrast, the choreography of the musical numbers seems more abstract and modern. This clash blurs the line between modernity and tradition.
However, it would have been more effective to reject the play's original context altogether and instead use a contemporary setting.
The story is undoubtedly still relevant today, and using a modern context would have been an imaginative way to accentuate the message's continuing importance.
"Spring Awakening" presents a question we have all faced at some point in our lives: How do we live in a society which we feel rejects us physically or ideologically?
AdHoc's production gives us a variety of answers.
The way each of these answers is communicated to the audience – through monologue, dialogue and song – gives audiences a powerful, perhaps even tear-jerking look at struggles we may or may not identify with.
Either way, the actors of AdHoc's production of "Spring Awakening" tell a story of rejection and reconciliation which strikes a chord with all audiences – even if the story is a century old.
– By William Hupp
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