MANSFIELD — Few shows in musical theatre challenge its audience more than the coming-of-age rock musical, “Spring Awakening.”
The story follows a group of teenagers navigating adolescence and their emerging sexuality under the harsh rule of parents and teachers.
It features profanity, moments of violence and abuse, and other intense themes. Director Ryan Shealy would rate it “R” in movie terms.
But it’s the difficult nature of these subjects that make them so important to talk about.
“We want people to know that it is heavy material, but one of our goals was to treat it with respect, from a place of truth and not sensationalism,” Shealy said.
The main romance of “Spring Awakening” is between Melchior and Wendla, two teenagers living sheltered, conservative lives who begin to discover the truth about life while challenging their elders, and even themselves.
Their story may be set in 1890s Germany, but the themes of the musical ring true even now, more than a century later.
“With the recent use of social media and widespread communication, we’ve started talking about sexuality and mental health and these foreign topics that we’ve always ignored,” said Caroline Grace Williams, who plays Wendla.
“There has always been a push to keep these topics covered and not share them with children.
“As these topics become more widely discussed in school and as we become more accepting as a society, we’re starting to realize maybe we should have these difficult conversations, because ultimately education is going to be what saves us all,” she said.
Noah Sgambellone plays Melchior, who actively rebels against the system he’s stuck in. This is the first adult show Sgambellone has appeared in at the Renaissance.
His most recent local performance was as Aladdin in the youth theatre production of “Aladdin Jr.” in 2018.
“At first it was difficult because there are a lot of very tough topics; Melchior has to feel a lot of different emotions very quickly,” Sgambellone said. “But this is a cast of professionals, and in the last couple weeks being with these people, it just makes you better. It’s been very rewarding, I’ve learned a lot.”
Niko Carter plays Moritz, best friends with Melchior and visibly struggling through the changes he’s experiencing as an adolescent. Carter said this is one of the most challenging, emotional roles he’s played.
“The show is very real and very raw,” Carter said. “It just serves it up to you. It’s very personal and very intimate.”
“Spring Awakening” marks the return of the “stage-on-stage” format on the Renaissance main stage, a concept that hasn’t happened since the opening of Theatre 166 in 2018.
Construction and weather delays have rendered the black-box theatre space unusable for the season, but a smaller audience was still a priority.
“Because of the difficult themes we’ve talked about, it is so intimate and so internal,” Shealy said. “You really want people to identify with these characters, and being right up close to them and seeing the pain and joy in their faces really draws you into the story and makes you feel something.”
Leah Gesouras, who plays the adult women in the show, said “Spring Awakening” may make the audience feel a little uncomfortable.
“But in a safe space, I think that’s okay. We want people to be vulnerable and uncomfortable and then feel comfort as well. I always tell people to come with an open mind and an open heart,” she said.
The story of “Spring Awakening” is juxtaposed against a folk-infused rock score. Surprisingly, the themes of “1890s Germany” and “rock musical” actually marry well.
“It plays on the angst and inner turmoil that these kids are going through, and rock music is the perfect medium for that to come out,” Shealy said. “It really is a perfect fit.”
The production’s music director Jacob Poiner, who plays all the adult men in the show, said the score is special and different.
“It has lush harmonic build like a classic Sondheim, but with a modern twist of pop rock underscoring,” Poiner said. “Plus there’s an infusion of staunch liturgical feeling because it takes place in a Lutheran school. So to weave all of those strands together in a musical way to enhance the storytelling is something that has been really beautifully done.”
Rounding out the cast is Samantha Woodill, McKenna Stoffer, Jamie Mayfield, Savanah Pfister, George Swarn, Justus Bartman, Joseph Ball, Ethan Chapman and Brien Carpenter.
Supporting the cast behind the scenes is costume designer Linda Turske, technical director Aaron Nicolas, assistant technical director Nik Demers, production manager Abe Swanger, and set designer Jason Kaufman.
This production also marks a first-time collaboration with Richland Academy, with choreography created by Marden Ramos and Erin Wolford.
“I’ve always loved Marden’s work, it’s so expressive and passionate, and Erin is a brilliant musical theatre nerd who understands this show better than most,” Shealy said. “They’ve done such an amazing job interpreting the text and letting these characters speak with their bodies.”
“Spring Awakening” opens at the Renaissance Theatre on Friday, Jan. 21 at 8 p.m. with additional performances on Jan. 22, 23, 28, 29 and 30. Tickets can be purchased online at rentickets.org.
In addition to January’s performances, “Spring Awakening” will be available to stream online through the month of February.
