When Michael and Jordan came to me with this show, I was thrilled. I love the show, the message, all of the huge themes it tackles. I thought how perfect a show to do right now, with these students.
When they told me we we’re going to have to abide by all of the Covid restrictions put in place by the school, including staging everything 8ft apart, I wanted to run away. I mean, HOW can you do Spring Awakening from a distance? I’m not one to back down from a challenge, but was this asking too much of us all?
And then, poetry and symbolism flooded my mind and I saw it. I knew how we could do this show.
Our Spring Awakening is about rocking the systems and battling the power within. I took this idea to our set designer, Holly Meyer-Dymny, and she flew - creating a world for our story to live, for our characters to battle the power within themselves, to battle the power within each other, within authority, and within the systems. We embraced the ever-changing government restrictions, battled them in our own ways, but were ultimately gracious, and grateful that we actually got to do an in-person show at a time when our industry is all but obliterated.
There are so many people to thank. Thank you to everyone who made it possible to do this show, to the designers who welcomed my thoughts but added your touches, to Siobhan for literally being the best in the biz, and for all of the students on stage and backstage who put their whole hearts into this show. To my collaborators Hailey Lewis and Chris Tsujiuchi – thank you for the teamwork, the efficiency, the passion, the love, and the desire to make this production great. You are both magical!
And to you, our audience, thank you for taking a break from Netflix to support live theatre. We can’t do it without you.
- Julie Tomaino, Director
