“We see parents bringing children into the world that they may be able to say to them: ‘How happy you are to have such parents!’” So says high school student Moritz Stiefel, in ironic and bitter words in “Spring Awakening,” or “Frühlings Erwachen,” the nineteenth-century German play by Frank Wedekind which stands at the forefront of modern drama. Featuring themes of repressed sexuality, an oppressive education system, and the challenges of peer pressures in growing to adulthood, this play has become an unexpected success in the American musical theatre world in its 2006 Broadway incarnation, with book and lyrics by Steven Sater and music by Duncan Sheik. The current production by St. Mark’s Players on Capitol Hill is exceedingly successful at bringing these raw qualities to the fore and making the concerns of the characters relevant to a modern U.S. audience.
The production, directed superbly by Paul Di Salvo, is a highly engaging example of the Bildungsroman, or coming of age, tradition of storytelling. Here, teenagers encounter universal themes with growing up and facing relationship challenges within families, instructors, and peers. Moritz is a sensitive, underachieving student in the rigid school system of his day. His friend Melchior, in contrast, is academically gifted, though he, too, is estranged from the school authorities due to his rebelliousness. Teenage Wendla is the lead female character in the play; she is naïve and trusting, yet questioning. These characters and their peers confront situations controversial in their time, which remain so even today: school bullying, domestic violence, teen suicide, homosexuality, and, as already indicated, a cruel educational system with an overreliance on testing at the exclusion of all other forms of intelligence and devoid of human warmth. The adults, whether educators, clergy, or parents, come off poorly by failing to lend a sympathetic ear to the problems of these young people, and by extension to all young people. What makes this play transcend the culture and era of Wilhelmine Germany is that the characters share many of the same hopes, desires, and questions which have confronted young people through all times.
A standout performer is Megan Cooper as Wendla, who presents all of her character’s conflicting emotions. She sings beautifully, from “Mama Who Bore Me” which begins the folk-flavored rock musical, to the poignant “Whispering.” Ted Randell is excellent as the rebellious Melchoir, as is Parker Rising as the sensitive Moritz. In a key move to emphasize how the adults present a united front of indifference at best, and intolerance at worst, all of the adult women characters are played excellently by the same actress, Betsy Scarisbrick. Similarly, all adult men, whether father, priest, or teacher, are played wonderfully by the same actor, Garrett Walsh. The cast is uniformly good in its choreography (Nathan Nichipor, choreographer) and company singing, as in “The Song of Purple Summer,” which ends this often somber musical with a ray of hope.
Period costumes of Merrick Shamblin and Suzanne Smith evoke the straight-laced world of nineteenth-century Wilhelmine Germany, as does the Gothic/Romanesque architecture of the historic St. Mark’s Church, which was built at about the same time the play was first written. The building and its stained-glass windows (the play is performed in the sanctuary) thus act as cultural points of reference when religious themes are mentioned, serving as a reminder that religion can provide at least some answers to many of the play’s problems, while also being an impediment when clergy lack compassion. The musicians, directed by Aimee Faulkmer, are top notch at conveying the rebellious yet lyrical score, very much in harmony with the play itself.
The production, which runs through May 16, 2026, is highly recommended, though due to mature themes, audience members under 17 are not admitted without a parent. For further information, please visit: stmarksplayers.org.
