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Actors Bring 'Awakening' Musical To Life

Photo by PAUL KOLNIK

Blake Bashoff plays Moritz in “Spring Awakening” opening at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center.

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By KATHY L. GREENBERG

Tribune correspondent

Published: January 1, 2009

TAMPA - The new hit musical "Spring Awakening" dredges up all the good, bad and ugly of adolescence. If it weren't for the great music and solid acting, the production now playing at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center would be just another after-school special.

The musical is based on Frank Wedekind's play, with Steven Sater's lyrics and music by Duncan Sheik. Set in a German town in the 1890s, the show is a coming-of-age story in which boys obsess over sex and girls wonder where babies really come from (a recipe for disaster). The teens question and rebel against adult rules, writhe with restless energy and retreat to childhood when the real world becomes too scary or confusing.

Wendla (Christy Altomare) is dying to know how babies are made, but her mother won't tell her. Melchior (Kyle Riabko), on the other hand, has a pretty good idea. Moritz (Blake Bashoff) does poorly in school and the pressure to please his father overwhelms him to the point of disaster. Anna (Gabrielle Garza) suffers abuse at home, Ilse (Steffi D) wishes Moritz would notice her, and Hanschen (Andy Mientus) is gay.

Despite bringing back memories that some would just as soon forget, the play's visual structure gives an interesting dimension to otherwise common fare. Susan Hilferty's Victorian-style costume design emphasizes the generation gap between the children and the adults (Angela Reed and Henry Stram).

The formal attire - representing order, discipline and conservative values - juxtaposes with the kids' defiance. It lends an almost sinister undercurrent to the innocence the adults are trying desperately to preserve (or enforce).

The music is outstanding. The actors express their characters' angst and longing through hard rock anthems and sad ballads that could be Top 40 radio plays. Some of the lyrics are raunchy but relatable, so it's hard not to chuckle.

There's also a more serious message here, and it confirms the power that adults have to either help or hurt children. What is said or not said, what is done or not done - it all matters. Under Michael Mayer's direction, "Spring Awakening" brings that fact to the forefront in a very cool way. No wonder the show won eight Tony Awards.

Note: This one is for mature audiences only, so don't plan on bringing the family.

IF YOU GO

WHEN: Through Jan. 4; 7:30 p.m. Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday

WHERE: Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, Carol Morsani Hall, 1010 N. MacInnes Place, Tampa

HOW MUCH: $38.50 to $72.50; (813) 222-1001 or www.tbpac.org

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