Emma Magbanua, Naya Ramsey-Clarke, Kayley Stallings, and Linda Bard (Photo by Doug Catiller)
Reviewed by Dana Martin
Chance Theater
Through August 10
Spring Awakening is the counter culture musical of the early aughts that speaks directly to the angsty youth, a la Rent and American Idiot. It opened on Broadway in 2006 and won eight Tony Awards including best musical, while its 2015 revival received three Tony Award nominations. The play’s social commentary, revolutionary for its time, addresses adolescent sexuality, mental and sexual health. The anachronistic adaptation also broke barriers by setting serious subject matter to alt rock and shining a light on rape culture and consent far before the introduction of the Me Too movement.
The story — music by Duncan Sheik, lyrics by Steven Sater — is adapted from the 1891 German play by Frank Wedekind.
Young Wendla (Kayley Stallings) begs her mother (Erica Farnsworth) for insight into her burgeoning sexuality. Her mother demurs. Wendla is joined by a group of teenage girls who fantasize about boys and yearn to know more about their changing bodies and desires. One of the girls, Martha (Emma Magbanua), reveals that she is regularly raped and beaten by her father, and her mother is complicit.
Young Wendla (Kayley Stallings) begs her mother (Erica Farnsworth) for insight into her burgeoning sexuality. Her mother demurs. Wendla is joined by a group of teenage girls who fantasize about boys and yearn to know more about their changing bodies and desires. One of the girls, Martha (Emma Magbanua), reveals that she is regularly raped and beaten by her father, and her mother is complicit.
Elsewhere, Moritz Stiefel (Brody Tarrant Sitton), a teenage boy haunted by erotic dreams is punished for lack of attention to his school work by his teacher (James Michael McHale). His friend Melchior Gabor (Corydon Melgoza) comes to his defense and is also beaten. Melchior comforts Moritz who requests an illustrated essay of his fantasies. Melchior obliges.
Wendla stumbles upon Melchior and the two kindle a teenage fling. Meanwhile Moritz is failed by school admins who want him out of sight; his angry father laments about how his son’s school dismissal will reflect upon his own reputation in town. Moritz subsequently takes his own life out of shame and despair. Wendla finds herself pregnant and Melchior is sent to a reform school where he is an outcast. Wendla dies after a botched back-alley abortion and Melchior discovers her tragic death accidentally as no one has the courage to tell him.
Director Jocelyn A. Brown accentuates the production’s softer qualities but backs off delving into unadulterated teenage angst against the oppressive authoritative behavior of adults. Robyn Manion’s music direction is solid, though it is difficult to hear the singers when the band is at full power. Several cast members double as band members weaving in and out of the story’s action. While there’s a clear delineation between band and cast, the most interesting moments occur when those lines are blurred.
Jacqueline Malenke’s excellent lighting design is sharp, moody, and exacting. Mo Goodfellow’s choreography is constrained by Bradley Kaye’s cumbersome set design. Kaye achieves a sterile though somewhat cluttered environment. Bradley Allen Lock’s costume design reinforces the environment’s dreariness with occasional pops of muted color.
The cast has excellent vocal quality across the board but generally lacks the sustained emotional undercurrent of ache, anger, and confusion. Kayley Stallings’ Wendla exudes innocence and naivete as does Corydon Melgoza’s Melchior. Brody Tarrant Sitton finds a subdued Moritz. Isabella Kaplan’s Ilse is street weary and possessing hard-won wisdom. Erica Farnsworth as Adult Woman, and James Michael McHale as Adult Man never quite achieve the oppressive authority or parental obtusity required to establish the polarity between adults and kids.
Spring Awakening is a story about young people chronically and completely failed by authority figures. This restrained production addresses the sins of our parents and the dangers that befall ignorant children. Growing up is difficult business, especially whilst riding a hormonal roller coaster through a hellscape of abusive and emotionally absent adults.
Chance Theater, 5552 E. La Palma Ave., Anaheim. Fri., 8 pm, Sat., 3 pm & 8 pm, Sun., 3 pm, Thurs., 7:30 pm; thru August 10th. www.chancetheater.com. Running time: two hours and 20 minutes with one intermission.
