Spring Awakening...the new class

[adamgreer]

Spring Awakening...the new class#1

Posted: 10/26/08 at 11:52pm

Finally caught the complete "new class" in Spring Awakening tonight. My last visit to the show was over the summer when Kyle Riabko, Alexandra Socha, and Blake Bashoff were still heading things up. Tonight was my 7th visit to the show, and while I always enjoy myself, the show has fallen off a notch or two.

I must say, however, that I did enjoy Hunter Parrish a great deal. It's a gutsy performance, and his acting is fantastic. His singing is all right, but he struggles mightily with the higher notes. Sadly, with him singing it, Left Behind does not have nearly the same impact it did in the past. He does much better with the lower stuff, however. Nevertheless, I liked his performance a lot, despite the less than stellar vocals. Incidentally, his performance is about the polar opposite of Riabko's. Riabko's singing was GREAT, but his acting was awful. Parrish's singing is merely serviceable, and in some numbers poor, but his acting is wonderful.

I've seen Alexandra Socha a number of times in this role, and always enjoyed her. I suspect, however, that she may have been ill this evening, because her voice was terrible tonight. She has never had the knock 'em out, powerhouse vocals that Michele did, but she definitely sounded ill tonight. Again, I am not criticizing her, because I've seen her in the past and LOVED her.

I wanted to like Gerard as Moritz, I really did, but I couldn't. It's a huge step down from Gallagher and Bashoff. Gerard's performance is some kind of hybrid of both Gallagher and Bashoff and doesn't really work all that well, I thought.

Despite still looking ridiculous with that horrible haircut, Emma Hunton continues to deliver one of the best acted scenes of the entire evening, during the interlude between Don't Do Sadness and Blue Wind.

As for the others, well, I found myself REALLY missing Lilli Cooper, Brian Charles Johnson, and Skylar Astin (him especially) tonight. All three of their replacements are enormous steps down from their predecessors. It's frustrating, because I'm sure there are talented young actors out there that could keep this show at the high level it once was at.

Christine Estabrook, probably trying to keep herself interested, is hamming it up even more now than she ever did before.

Overall, the show just did not have the energy and excitement I remember it having. It still packs an emotional punch, but it's just not quite the same as I remember it.

[Yankeefan007]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#2

Posted: 10/26/08 at 11:53pm

I found everyone largely better than the originals.

Funny.

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#2

Posted: 10/26/08 at 11:57pm

I agree with mostly everything you've said, adam.

I hope they kick the energy up a few notches for the last few months of the run. When I saw it last (in August) it was good but not as great as it was when I saw it immediately after it opened.

The cast is not as good but Parrish is, in my opinion, as strong as Groff who was excellent in the vocal department and just 'good' in the acting department. Parrish is the opposite, doing fine vocally but knocking it out of the park in his big acting moments.

And I really disliked Socha.

The cast, to me, seemed markably less energetic than the OBC. Which detracts a lot from the show. And a lot of them seemed to be doing carbon copies of their predecessors. And falling terribly flat.


The show is so phenomenal though that a mediocre cast couldn't even really do too much harm.

[TheaterLover2]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#3

Posted: 10/27/08 at 12:02am

Sunday Night - 8th Show of the Week....
My voice would not be at its best either.

Try seeing the show on a Wednesday or Thursday - everyone sounds much better!!

[RentBoy86]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#4

Posted: 10/27/08 at 12:02am

Despite still looking ridiculous with that horrible haircut, Emma Hunton continues to deliver one of the best acted scenes of the entire evening, during the interlude between Don't Do Sadness and Blue Wind."

Really?! I thought she was horrible. She looked a mess - no offense to her, it's more the costumers' fault, but I thought she horribly overacted. She didn't seem the rebel, artsty type nor did she seem to have any honest line readings.

[jake6970]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#5

Posted: 10/27/08 at 12:06am

I lovvvvve Emma's Ilse. I think she portrays the character so so well. She's very different but at the same time you can find her in any high school...that arsty girl with the cool hair that isn't popular but isn't weird either.

[adamgreer]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#6

Posted: 10/27/08 at 6:41am

Sunday Night - 8th Show of the Week....
My voice would not be at its best either.

Try seeing the show on a Wednesday or Thursday - everyone sounds much better!

Well, I usually end up at Sunday evening performances of this show, and this is the first time it's ever felt this lacking in energy, and the first time many of the voices were less than stellar.

[millie_dillmount]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#7

Posted: 10/27/08 at 7:55am

I would like to see Hunter Parrish in this - glad to hear he is getting great reviews from people here!

"We like to snark around here. Sometimes we actually talk about theater...but we try not to let that get in our way." - dramamama611

[LotteTBS138]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#8

Posted: 10/27/08 at 8:02am

I saw it for the first time on Saturday night and I enjoyed it. Naturally, I did not have anything to compare it with but it does suck when you have this teenage girls talking throughout the WHOLE show!! Even when the characters are talking. (or atleast, the first act because for the 2nd, I moved myself up to the balcony)

I once heard someone describe her (Ruthie Henshall) singing as sounding as though she's trying to swallow a whole meatball slightly larger than her windpipe. (The same person compared Michael Ball's singing to sounding as though he's sitting on a washing machine on spin cycle and Colm Wilkinson's to a man with a paralyzed lip trying to eat cottage cheese.) --- Schmerg_The_Impaler

[RentBoy86]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#9

Posted: 10/27/08 at 10:41am

How was the "graveyard" scene for Hunter? When I saw it he wasn't invested in the least bit. He was just sort of saying the lines without any given context or emotion, therefore, the entire end was just sort of like "this is it?" And on top of that, what the hell does "Purple Summer" mean?

[PiraguaGuy2]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#10

Posted: 10/27/08 at 10:47am

Your thread title reminded me of Saved by the Bell.

Formerly SirNotAppearing - Joined 3/08

[BroadwayGuy12]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#11

Posted: 10/27/08 at 3:11pm

adamgreer, were you a fan of Lauren Pritchard's Ilse? I really enjoyed her performance, so I wasn't expecting to like Emma Hunton. I was wrong, though; I thought Hunton gave a very strong performance during Don't Do Sadness/Blue Wind. My last time at the show was in May, so I haven't seen all of the replacements, but I definitely think she's one of the strongest. She's different from Lauren, but in a good way.

[adamgreer]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#12

Posted: 10/27/08 at 3:15pm

Yes, I enjoyed Lauren Pritchard's Ilse a great deal. I think Hunton is a better actress, but I definitely miss the smokey, sultry vocals of Lauren Pritchard. Hunton's voice is very, very good, but I think it's just too polished for that role, if that makes any sense.

[Theatreboy49]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#13

Posted: 10/27/08 at 5:35pm

I saw the new cast over labor day weekend and thought they were spectacular. Socha was phenominal and so I can understand being underwhelmed by her if she was ill. I thought Hunter's singing was good though not great but I agree his acting is very strong. I thought they had great energy and I enjoyed it just as much as the OBC but maybe it was just an off night for some.

<------ Me and my friends with patti Lupone at my friends afterparty for her concert with audra mcdonald during the summer of 2007.
"I am sorry but it is an unjust world and virtue is only triumphant in theatricle performances" The Mikado

[winter_sky]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#14

Posted: 10/27/08 at 5:42pm

I don't know if I'm spoiled by the freshness and energy of the original cast but I was completely underwhelmed by the current cast with a few exceptions. I think since the characters are so underwritten it's really necessary to have a strong personality and charisma that makes them worth watching. I didn't think most of the cast really draws your attention to them. I also think a few of them are trying to hard and have affected exaggerated movements or line readings.

I thought Gerard and Alexandra were really underwhelming.

[legally_popular]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#15

Posted: 10/27/08 at 5:43pm

Great review. I have never seen the OBC and the show itself is nowhere near a favorite of mine, but I enjoyed this cast very much. I was very impressed with Hunter Parrish, especially in the emotional scenes. To answer Rentboy's question, I thought he was great during the graveyard scene. He was crying at several parts in the second act, including that one.

And I agree about Emma Hunton's Ilse. I really loved that scene, she was excellent.

[BroadwayGuy12]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#16

Posted: 10/27/08 at 7:25pm

I know what you mean about Hunton's voice sounding too polished. She definitely sounds good, but Pritchard's vocals fit the free-spirtied, bohemian attitudes of Ilse much better. I do think Hunton is a better actress, though. Her scenes, especially the "Don't Do Sadness/Blue Wind" interlude and "Left Behind", were very moving.

[dg22894]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#17

Posted: 10/27/08 at 8:51pm

I saw it twice. The first time I saw it with Blake and Emma and all of the Original cast in with an understudy in for Thea (Jenna something) And the second I saw the new class and Jenna in for Thea again

The first time it was AMAZING and Jenna was really good. My Favroite was Emma Huton and Brain. Jonathan and Lea were good but I thought they were better

The second time I saw it the magic in the acting was almost gone. Jenna and Emma kept it to be my favorite show but there was some magic lost with out the original leads

[BwayBound2012]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#18

Posted: 1/3/09 at 10:01pm

i'll have to say i really enjoyed seeing hunter parrish. i only saw kyle before but hunter did much better than kyle. i will have to say tho, i am not a fan of socha. i could barely hear her singing. and i think gerard blew blake out of the park to be honest. the girl playing thea was pretty dull, so i prefer remy zaken to her. otherwise, i loved the new cast. it felt like a new energy. i had frances for the adult woman that day and also felt she was better than estabrook.

[dramamama611]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#19

Posted: 1/3/09 at 10:23pm

Ugh..a daggar in my heart! Better than Christine????? I think Estabrook is the ONLY adult woman that has been fantastic...with Frances coming in 2nd place...but with a distance between them. THe others were dreadful...imo.

To each his own.

If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it? These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.

[ColorTheHours048]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#20

Posted: 1/3/09 at 10:37pm

I saw both Kate Burton and the other woman who was there for about a month (don't even remember her name). Anyway, they were both absolutely atrocious. Christine was much better her first time around in the show and then she came back and decided to yuck it up in ALL of her scenes. Ruined the role for me. I absolutely love Frances in the role and had the pleasure of seeing her three times. She's my favorite.

[BwayBound2012]

re: Spring Awakening...the new class#21

Posted: 1/7/09 at 3:07pm

i know, but after seeing both... really i felt that frances made the role even funnier. but as you said, to each their own