We live in the age of the musical metaphor. Afraid of critical reviews, lawsuits and, God forbid, offending the audience, much of what we see on Broadway nowadays is a rehash of a multi-million dollar grossing Disney film. If you do decide to tackle a difficult issue, you have to cloak it in enough political correctness to get it past The New York Times and Oprah. Spring Awakening is the backhanded bitch slap to this notion.
We live in the age of the musical metaphor. Afraid of critical reviews, lawsuits and, God forbid, offending the audience, much of what we see on Broadway nowadays is a rehash of a multi-million dollar grossing Disney film. If you do decide to tackle a difficult issue, you have to cloak it in enough political correctness to get it past The New York Times and Oprah. Spring Awakening is the backhanded bitch slap to this notion. Within this musical, nothing is muted, nothing is hushed, and everything is thrown into your face like a bucket of iced water. And after some of the sex scenes, you’ll probably need a cold shower on top of that.
How many musicals do you know that have titles like The Bitch of Living and Totally Fucked? What about masturbation games and underage sex? What may seem shocking to the modern theatre would have been cardiac arrest inducing to its original audience. Written in 1891 by German playwright, Frank Wederkind, Spring Awakening has been re-envisioned as a rock musical. Premiering on Broadway in 2006, it won an overwhelming eight Tony Awards the following year. It’s the Titanic of musicals. And after all of this time, it is finally having its Victorian debut performance.
“We’re definitely living in an age where people want to hear the truth,” says the musical’s newest choreographer, Stephen Agisilaou. “We live in a society where sexuality and sex are spoken about now. Your parents wouldn’t hide it like they would have in the 1800s. They want to voice themselves.”
And voice themselves they certainly do. There’s masturbation, incestual sexual abuse, suicide, homophobia, everything that you would normally get in an episode of Skins, except if Skins were set in the 1890s and was soundtracked by Modest Mouse. It’s about experimenting with your sexuality, discovering your hormones and how you act out when no one will tell you what’s going on ‘down there’.
“I’ve never seen themes like this put forward in this way,” continues Agislaou. “It’s so unexpected when you see it. You leave with such a lasting impact. When something works, it works.”
If the thought of going to see a musical makes you think of accompanying your grandmother to the dentist, never fear. “It’s full of modern contemporary rock ballads,” assures Agisilaou. “What we are watching and what we are listening to are polar opposites, but they mesh so well together. If you are into live rock music and beautiful vocals, you’ll definitely enjoy the show. It’s edgy. It’s not your regular musical theatre.”
And hey, if you’re not convinced yet, it was the production that first shone a spotlight on Lea Michelle, now of Glee fame. She was the female lead in the original Broadway cast before being whisked away to TV world and all but getting her kit off in the name of ‘fashion’. Fact.
On the silver screen, we often see 30-something actresses with waxy Madame Tussaud’s faces trolloping around a schoolroom corridor pretending to be fitting their boob jobs in training bras. However, in this production created by the Young Australian Broadway Chorus, 16 year olds are being played by 16 year olds. “They have a connection to the story as it’s about teenagers,” Agisilaou says, “and that’s the advantage of using a young cast: they can relate a lot to the issues that are being talked about. It’s all around them.” However, this isn’t your average high-school production. The intensity of the emotional carnage that strikes through the plot makes Romeo and Juliet seem like Johnson and Friends.
Regardless of the play being 120 years old, Agisilaou believes that the issues expressed are still relevant in 2011. “We’ve got a big issue with teen pregnancy and teen suicide at the moment, so it definitely resonates. The exact same situation is happening now today.
“This show, although it is quite gut wrenching with its full on issues, does leave you with a hope. It makes you realise that you can talk to someone, and you have somewhere to go. You shouldn’t feel alone in these situations. You should be free to be open and talk about your issues, and never withhold anything. It’s never the answer.”
Spring Awakening premieres on Thursday January 27 at The National Theatre in St Kilda and will continue for 11 performances until February 5. Tickets range from $39 – $49, and you can book at ticketek.com.au or 1300 795 012. It contains strong language, sexual references and adult themes. Rawr.
