Spring Awakening Reviews

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 6:30pm

The AP is Positive:

"The play caused quite a fuss when it was first produced a century ago. But then, plot points include premarital sex, abortion, homosexuality, autoerotism, sadomasochism and incest. Even today, they are likely to cause a stir.

That hasn't deterred adapter and lyricist Steven Sater and composer Duncan Sheik. What they have done here is upend traditional musical theater. They separate story from song, rigidly dividing the saga of these troubled teens as they confront their budding sexuality in a world that wants to keep it hidden. Propriety and appearances are what count, after all.

Sater pretty much follows the Wedekind play, but when the story stops for a tune, the actors pull out microphones or set up a mike stand, and the O'Neill stage explodes in a kind of rock concert, circa 1890.

Despite the division, the show, directed with driving force by Michael Mayer, has astonishing unity, a clarity of purpose. The songs comment on the action, which Mayer pushes with blazing speed. Although production values have been enhanced, the setting, designed by Christine Jones, is still minimal. A small band sits on the nearly empty stage as do the actors when they are not performing. The performers mingle among several rows of theatergoers also seated on the sides of the playing area.

Sheik, a singer-songwriter best known for the 1996 hit "Barely Breathing," writes rhythmic, driving melodies that neatly capture the frenetic uncertainty of the characters. Yet there is a quiet, introspective quality to some of his more mournful songs. Sater's intelligent lyrics display a sense of poetry without feeling precious.

______________________________________________________________

For all its turbulence and focus on teenage angst, the show concludes on a note of uplift, "The Song of Purple Summer," a plea for tolerance and understanding. The number celebrates the potential of young people and all their possibilities. Exactly the right ending for a musical as adventurous as "Spring Awakening."


http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/12/10/arts/NA_A-E_STG_US_Spring_Awakening.php

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 6:41pm

And so it begins. Keep those fingers crossed, folks!!!!!!!!

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 6:47pm

Talkin Broadway is Negative:

"Think back for just a moment, if you will, on your own coming of age: Were your early and mid teens a confusing, annoying, maybe moderately frightening time, or were they a wall-to-wall laugh fest set amid a series of rock concerts?

If the latter was the case for you, then I recommend making an immediate trip to the Eugene O'Neill to relive those terrific times in Spring Awakening. If, on the other hand, you see your teenage years more as a necessary evil than a never-ending party, more about surviving growing pains than slam-dancing through turmoil about parents, school, and sex, this is probably not the musical for you.

Against all odds, authors Steven Sater (book and lyrics) and Duncan Sheik (music) have adapted one of the most universal plays of the last 125 years into one of the most alienating musicals in seasons. The oddest part of this, though, isn't the work's failure to engage the memory or the spirit, but its having lost what ability it once had to do just that.

At the Atlantic Theater Company, where Spring Awakening premiered this past spring, Sater and Sheik's adaptation of Frank Wedekind's scandalous 1891 play about German youths unintentionally done in by their society-bound parents was simultaneously as nippy as a dirty martini and as harmless as a jar of marshmallow fluff. Sater's script possessed little of the gravity and none of the bite of Wedekind's expressionist masterpiece, yet somehow the story still exploded to life; Sheik's contemporary alt-rock music, which shed a harsh, centuries-spanning light on the kids' plights, and Michael Mayer's firm direction were crucial in maintaining what seemed a paradoxically cohesive atmosphere.

No longer. The unassuming Off-Broadway hit, which needed just a little untweaking to recapture the source play's puncturing panache, has now reopened without the slightest trace of the attitude and seriousness it needs to set itself apart from other Generation-Y angst musicals. What was teetering on the edge at the Atlantic is now in full free fall.

The problem, ironically enough for a show about the lies, force, and threats parents use to control their growing children, is a lack of discipline. Only Jonathan Groff and Lea Michele, in the major roles of school heartthrob Melchior and his blossoming playmate Wendla, have avoided the temptation to sacrifice truth for showmanship. Everyone else, from Mayer on down, has embraced the traditional Broadway-musical-comedy approach of louder-faster-funnier, with disastrous results........The company's energetic musical performances will implant many of Sater and Sheik's songs happily in your brain for days to come; you won't be able to keep yourself from humming songs like "The Bitch of Living" or "Totally F*CKed." That you leave the theater humming those songs rather than being devastated by what they mean is precisely what keeps Spring Awakening snowbound. "



http://www.talkinbroadway.com/world/SpringAwakening.html

Updated On: 12/10/06 at 06:47 PM

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 6:50pm

Do they like anything? It just so happens I agree with them, but seriously.

[bwayondabrain]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 6:50pm

Well, Talkin-Broadway usually is negative
but glad to hear the AP one was positive :)
i especially agree with what a beautiful song "Purple Summer" is- i can't get it out of my head!
:)
i hope for more positivity!

[kidmanboy]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 6:53pm

Everyone else, from Mayer on down, has embraced the traditional Broadway-musical-comedy approach of louder-faster-funnier, with disastrous results.

What?? Like the show or not, the direction cannot possibly be called traditional broadway-musical-comedy. I can see plenty of room to criticize the show if you so choose but that's just ridiculous.

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 6:56pm

Well, just a minute or two before his Spring Awakening review popped up, Murray posted a rave review of A Very Merry Unauthorized Children's Scientology Pageant (which I also raved about as being hysterical).

So he doesn't hate everything:

A Very Merry Unauthorized Children's Scientology Pageant Review

Updated On: 12/10/06 at 06:56 PM

[Benzy92]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 6:57pm

Matthew Murray is such a terrible reviewer.. I mean, everyone knows Wicked isn't a perfect show by any means, but this is the reviewer who compared it to Dance of the Vampires.. ever since that review, I just read his reviews and laugh..

Here's hoping Spring Awakening gets all the raves it deserves!

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 7:12pm

The AP wasn't a surprise -- if I recall correctly, it's very similar to the review he wrote of it when it was at the Atlantic.

I assume Isherwood will be covering the show for the Times -- generally he does the re-review of any transfers that he covered originally. He was mostly positive before (with a few quibbles), so I assume the new review will have a similar tone:

Isherwood's Original Review of Spring Awakening

Updated On: 12/10/06 at 07:12 PM

[Katurian2]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 7:21pm

Maybe this show has a chance after all...

[B3TA07]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 7:21pm

I can't wait to see what the nobodies have to say.

[shiksa_goddess]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 7:24pm

I'd rather have Isherwood review the show than a certain other Times critic we all know and....love.

[Katurian2]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 7:26pm

Yes, Ishwood gave such a flat out rave the first time, he couldn't totally change his mind, and with a positive review from Isherwood, this could totally see a long run.

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 7:27pm

It wouldn't surprise me if Brantley took this one. Isherwood took Vertical Hour - a high profile show like that would usually be Brantley's turf.

[Fantabulous428]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 7:30pm

Brantley also took COMPANY, which Isherwood originally reviewed in Cincinnati. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Yes, Ishwood gave such a flat out rave the first time...

Well, I wouldn't say Isherwood gave a flat out rave. Yes, he was very positive, but he still had some qualms about it - he just says them in a very respectful way - whereas, Brantley usually doesn't.

Updated On: 12/10/06 at 07:30 PM

[shiksa_goddess]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 7:30pm

I'm really hoping Brantley doesn't take it.

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 7:32pm

Brantley's a dick.

[riv]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 7:37pm

I pray this show gets excellent reviews across the board.

It deserves them.

(By the way, of course Brantley will take it. He's the Times number one and the show is opening on Broadway. It's HIS job, regardless of what some of us may think of him.)

Updated On: 12/10/06 at 07:37 PM

[jv92]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 7:38pm

I've agreed with every word Brantley has said (with the exception of his Mary Poppins review) for the past two seasons. I don't think he's a dick, MattBrain. I'm actually hoping for a fairly mixed review for Spring Awakening so it doesn't steal Grey Garden's thunder.
Updated On: 12/10/06 at 07:38 PM

[Princeton78]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 7:45pm

Here's hoping that Brantley takes it!

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 7:47pm

For consistency's sake, The Times usually (not always) has Isherwood do the re-review of shows that have transferred from off-Broadway to Broadway that he did the original review for (Spelling Bee for one). In cases where Brantley did the Off-Broadway review (he does several major off-Broadway openings in addition to the Broadway ones) then he does the re-review (Grey Gardens, Little Dog Laughed).

[brainpolice23]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 7:49pm

my review for my school paper. it's pretty positive. likely to bring the show some big bucks.

Gays. Sex. Suicide. Child Abuse. Abortion. Musical? No, it’s not Rent, or any other show with pseudo-rock ballads, bound to be spread by trendy teenagers. This new production is based on a play by Frank Wedekind that was written in 1891. The original Spring Awakening first appeared in English in 1917, and was promptly shut down because of the nature of the plays content, which caused the New York City Commissioner of Licenses to call the play “pornographic.” Almost 90 years later, playwright and lyricist Steven Sater and Alternative Rock musician Duncan Sheik decided to rework this coming of age story into (could it be?) a rock musical. After a sell-out run at the Atlantic Theatre off-Broadway, the play made the transformation to the Eugene O’Neill Theatre on Broadway for previews on November 17th, with opening night scheduled for December 10th.
The idea of Alternative Rock teamed with classical playwriting may seem mismatched. Yet, through clever direction, storytelling, and astounding lighting design the songs became internal monologues, expressing the angst and anguish felt by many of the teenage characters. The staging and structural work by the director and creative team allow for a seamless transition between the late 19th century play and 21st century music.
The play focuses on two main characters: Wendla [Lea Michele], a budding teen whose naïveté about her sexuality and physical development come back to haunt her, and Melchior [Jonathan Groff], a hunky rebel whose radical ideas and sexual conquests lead to his expulsion from school and society. All seems to go wrong after the two engage in a spicy love-making scene that caused some of the older audience members to adjust their spectacles and loosen their ties.
While the majority of the plot focuses on the tragic romance of the two leads, it is the various sub-plots that maintain the interest of audience members. First there’s Moritz Stiefel [John Gallagher Jr.], the poor boy who struggles with his schoolwork and his hormones, pressured heavily by his father and shunned by his teachers and headmasters. Gallagher’s awkwardness and raw energy make each one of his songs and scenes crowd favorites. Thrown into the mix, is a theme of child abuse. One of the female characters, Martha, played timidly by Lilli Cooper, speaks to her schoolmates about the horrific welts her father makes on her body with his belt. This causes some friends to shriek, while others claim that “discipline” indicates love. Somehow, from this abrupt sequence springs another random theme in which Wendla toys with the idea of sadomasochism. Then, the other prominent vignette about sexual experimentation and gender crisis is introduced through the eyes of two schoolboys, Hanschen [Jonathan B. Wright] and Ernst [Gideon Glick]. Wright seduces Glick with his arrogant Aryan demeanor, while Glick succumbs after being taken captive by the machismo of his lover. This scene has a refreshingly satirical bite, and features some of the best acting in the show. Another showstopper is Hanschen’s masturbation scene, which also features the character Georg [Skylar Astin], who is oddly obsessed with his piano teacher’s lady parts. This all leads up to a ballad about sexual discovery titled “Touch Me.”
What shines the most in this production is the score. Duncan Sheik’s anthems “I Don’t Do Sadness,” and “Totally F*****” bridge the gap between the 19th century German schoolboys and girls and modern day school children, helping to highlight the relevance and timelessness of the play and its themes. The acting is much stronger on the male side, with Gallagher Jr., Astin, Glick, and Wright working phenomenally in supporting roles. While Lea Michele has a superb voice, her acting tends to be dry, and her diction crunchy and overdone. Although some may be put off by the racy subject nature of this play and the unorthodox score, I am certain that this show will find its audience. More likely than not, it will be teenagers who frequent this new production. However, it won’t be as bothersome when chorus kids and theatre geeks start belting “The Bitch of Living” in the hallways, because they’ll be advertising a play that represents everything we have to go through during our teenage years.

[Becoz_i_knew_you21]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 7:50pm

Talkin' Broadway never has anything nice to say.

[TheActr97J]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 8:03pm

Talkin' Broadway is getting on my nerves too.

I can't wait for the rest of these reviews!

[Rotel1026]

Posted: 12/10/06 at 8:39pm

I'm eagerly awaiting the Broadway.com man on the street reviews. I wonder if they'll love it?