Spring Awakening Review 4/26/08 Mat - pics/signed Playbill

[maya5892]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 10:44pm

Alright, so I'm a Spring Awakening fan. And I got to see it again today for my birthday. And with the recent cast changes (i.e. Emma Hunton as Ilse, Matt Doyle as Hanschen), I am SO glad I did.


Cast (in order of speaking):

Lea Michelle (Wendla) - This girl was ON tonight. Seriously. Her voice was just so gorgeous. My friend and I were talking about how tonight she made us like songs that hadn't been our favorites.

Christine Estabrook (Adult Women) - Amazing. I only have seen Kate Burton before and Christine was so much better. My favorite part was her twitching while speaking while being one of the headmasters. Very funny.

*Jenna Ushkowitz (Martha) - Wow. I was amazed by her. I really had no expectations going into it, but was blown away by her "Dark I Know Well". Really talented.

Emma Hunton (Ilse) - Words cannot even BEGIN to express my love for this girl. She has a beautiful voice. Beautiful. And her acting was spot-on. The best acting for Ilse I have ever seen. And, sorry to say it, she was overall better than Lauren Pritchard. Also, her rocking out during "Totalled F'd" was by far the most spastic and amazing thing I have ever seen.

Phoebe Stroll (Anna) - Not much to say. I mean, she was good.

*Eryn Murman (Thea) - She was good, but does she always wear glasses while going on? Didn't really bother me, but was just wondering because she wasn't wearing them after the show.

Glenn Flesher (Adult Men) - I dunno. Something about him bothers me. Can't quite put my finger on it.

Brian Charles Johnson (Otto) - Ok, I love BCJ, but today he seemed a bit off. I think he may have been sick. However, he OWNED the line "The weirdest SH*T is still to come!" in "Totally F'd". Very funny.

Matt Doyle (Hanschen) - Oh. My. God. Wow. I've been in love with him because of his work in the "Bare" recording, but he was PHENOMENAL in this role. Perfect. He had fun with it. And him and Blake played nicely off of each other in WOYBr. Matt is perfect in this role. And has a stellar voice.

Blake Daniel (Ernst) - God, I love this guy. He's so darn cute. And I LOVE his solo in "Touch Me". Also, as I just stated, his and Matt's chemistry was amazing.

Skylar Astin (Georg) - Love his voice. So. Much. And his riffing in "Touch Me" is AMAZING. Also, him and Christine during "My Junk" was soooo funny.

Blake Bashoff (Moritz) - Amazing. Seriously, love everything about him. His voice, his vulnerability, comedic timing. And especially his facial expressions. He comes off as so youthful and naive and it is wonderful.

Jonathon Groff (Melchior) - Need I really say anything about this wonderful man? He's just amazing. And he spits, but what else is new? Sad to see him go soon. But he did his part well. Really, amazing.

Overall, it was EXCELLENT. I really did love almost everyone, especially Emma. Wow. Watch out for her. Oh, and fun story; when I told her my name was Emma as well, she said "What the F*CK!!! No??" It was great. Haha.

Ok, I got to meet pretty much everyone backstage and get there signatures so here are the pics:






















**Haha. Groff. Not Gross.
Updated On: 4/26/08 at 10:44 PM

[Zeitoujo]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 10:46pm

How did you get backstage?!

[dramamama611]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 11:14pm

Great pix!

I'm guessing she "bought" a tour they were selling for BC/EFA. $350 per person. Tax deductible and for a great cause.

A couple of the understudies wear glasses for Thea. I'm guessing an attempt to make Thea stand out from the other girls as Thea is suppose to be a little younger. Remy has her physical size.

I saw the show on Thursday..but without ANY understudies except for Jessie in Matt's Chair. (Because the new matt's costume isn't ready. He's starting Tuesday.)

[ClumsyDude15]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 11:19pm

Amazing review, Maya!
I'm uber jealous you went backstage. :]
-sigh- Oh Jonathan Groff. How I cannot wait till May 7th to see you.

[yankees1253]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 11:19pm

thanks for the review. i will prob get used to emma when i see her because i also did see lauren. lauren did leave a wonderful impression on me. i cant wait to see matt as hanschen. i agree with you about glenn i hated him as adult men. i read on the fan club baord that too that brian was off. i love to see some understudies because eryn and jenna raely get a chance to shine. eryn will be going on as martha(check broadwayunderstudies.com). it will be funny if lili and remy were both looking at the same college. i will post my review prob of when i go may 17th evening, if i have time. zeitojo..she prob knows somebody that works for the show and thats why shes backstage.

[maya5892]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 11:23pm

The chairs were filled by Gerard, Frances, and Jesse.

Oh, and can I just say how jealous am of Emma's glasses? I think I even blurted out how much I liked them....haha.
Updated On: 4/26/08 at 11:23 PM

[broadwayfan7]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 12:25am

Thanks for your review! Great pictures!

[maya5892]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 12:28am

Oh, and dramamama, thanks for the glasses explanation

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 2:05am

Emma is so cute! I'm not sure about her sunglasses, though...

[SDav 10495]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 2:33am

Nice photos, how great that you got to meet almost the whole cast!

And I didn't know that Thea understudies wore glasses. My sister just saw the show this evening and described a girl in pigtails and glasses, and I wondered for a second if she was just confused...guess not.

eryn will be going on as martha(check broadwayunderstudies.com). it will be funny if lili and remy were both looking at the same college.

Is Lilli taking off to look at schools? I always forget how old the cast members are--she's actually one of the youngest, right? (Remy's out sick and is already done with college-hunting.)

[yankees1253]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 10:59am

remy and lili both graduated from high school this year. emma is the youngest at 16. feel better to remy.
i have to mae a weird comment....why is groff wearing a jacket?. i do feel lili and remy will stay around the nyc area. remy said in a interview she wants to major in marketing design and lili wants to major in theatre. i wont be surprised if they go to nyu. good luck to both of them in college. lili may just be vacationing or taking time off.

[SpellingBeeFan4Ever]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 11:11am

Great review!

dramamama611 , I got backstage for many shows without paying $350. Is that just for Spring Awakening?

[maya5892]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 12:35pm

Yeah, yankees, I really have no idea why he is wearing a jacket. haha

haha and Lizzie, they're pink. And awesome.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 12:35pm

I just haven't seen a stage door picture of her since she was like...11. So I was extra amused.

[maya5892]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 12:36pm

haha ok I get it

[alliez92092]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 1:35pm

Actually, Remy's already graduated from high school. Lilli's a senior. I think that Emma Hunton is currently the youngest in the cast.

Great review Emma!

[maya5892]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 1:39pm

Yeah, Emma is a sophomore in high school, I believe. Maybe a junior.

[alliez92092]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 1:45pm

She's a junior. When I met her she was like, this is so weird I'm only a year older than you!

[maya5892]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 1:46pm

Yeah, but I think a young junior. Like, a summer birthday.

[maya5892]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 3:27pm

Oh, and I know the new swing Matt Shingledecker starts Tuesday. If someone is going to see him let us know how he does!

[springstagemanager]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 5:01pm

.........
I have no idea why he is wearing a jacket.

FUNFACT- It's the same one he wore on his 'backstage tour video.'

Hehehe =)

[maya5892]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 5:07pm

Haha. That's true! So maybe it's a backstage thing? hehe

[ILuv2shop531]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 5:25pm

oh to why lilli isn't here this week, i found out from an FB event jenna sent about her being martha, & she said on it that lilli is in a play at her school & that is why she isn't here.
& remy was accepted early decision to Columbia last year.

[maya5892]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 5:26pm

Really? Thanks for the info.

[jaystarr]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 5:31pm

Maya- nice photos and may I say that -you are a very pretty young lady!

J*