If Berkeley’s cast of “Spring Awakening” could have torn the roof off the Choral Ensemble hall, they would. This week’s production was a spellbinding drama about the challenges of young adulthood and the effort to rebel against the status quo.
“Spring Awakening” — the second performance by Berkeley’s BareStage Productions — chronicles a pivotal moment in the lives of a group of young teenagers from 19th-century Germany. As these youths’ budding romantic and sexual exploits are restricted by a puritanical society, their attempts to explore their own curiosities result in eventual tragedy.
In this performance, the technical prowess of BareStage’s team is apparent as they wield their limited resources to create an immersive theatrical experience. Eschewing lavish ornamentation, director Kira Wefers created a setpiece that instead centered the cast’s performances. Leaving much of the scenery to the audience’s imagination helped to refocus the audience’s attention toward the dynamics between the characters, with the repositioning of set platforms helping to subtly indicate changes within the narrative.
Nevertheless, reducing the set to three rolling dollies required extended breaks, in which the cast was required to dash offstage after every few scenes and reposition the platforms. When the play is presented as dozens of vignettes each only a few minutes in length, some narrative is lost in the process. The lack of prop, set or costume changes impedes the audience’s understanding of certain plot elements, such as when headstones are replaced with unmarked stage platforms or when different characters played by the same actor have broadly similar costumes. These thematic choices occasionally seemed to detract from the musical’s story.
The musical accompaniment, however, was an effective cornerstone of the show. BareStage chose to add a live band to accompany the production, an excellent supplement to the ensembles’ excellent vocal performances. The pit orchestra performed exquisitely — offering an understated soundtrack that grounded the actors.
While the choreography held great symbolic significance, some of the actors’ blocking felt uneven. Occasionally, a member of the cast would drop out of sync with their fellow performers. Some superfluous elements distracted from the otherwise seamless dance composition, appearing to confuse some members of the cast who occasionally missed a beat.
Throughout the performance, the dynamic between Melchior (Guillermo Castro) and Wendla (Aleshani Altan) shone. Castro’s portrayal of Melchior was earnest and soulful — an expression of the emotional heft his character carried. Altan’s Wendla was the perfect counterpart to Castro, an unflinching young woman who boldly strode onto stage and effortlessly exuded confidence. Whether spoken or sung, the tension between Wendla and Castro was palpable — Castro and Altan perfectly encapsulated the sincere curiosity and blooming affection that defines romance in young adulthood. Wefers’ deft juxtaposition of the romance between Wendla and Melchior with the moralistic constraints imposed upon them emphasizes the tragic yet preventable misery that befalls this cast.
The pivotal dynamic between Castro’s Melchior and Altan’s Wendla is accentuated by a well-rounded ensemble cast. Leslie Valenzuela (Ilse) and Charlie McDonald (Hanschen) shine in all of their moments on stage. McDonald’s Hanschen introduces moments of levity in the otherwise tragic play, while Valenzuela’s Ilse epitomizes the anguish felt by the audience as they observe the downfall of the central couple. In group scenes, Valenzuela stood out with a deep contralto-esque voice and a demeanor imbued with the deep anguish her character experiences in the play.
“Spring Awakening” has long been performed with the litany of adult roles performed by only two actors — listed as “adult men” and “adult women.” In this show, admirable performances by Josephine Najera and Kaiya Amani Hoareau are distracted, however, by their need to portray multiple characters without costume or prop changes to indicate their role. While at times an inspired choice, at its worst it’s one that causes audience confusion.
As a whole, “Spring Awakening” plays to the instinctual, inherent fears and longings held within humanity, with BareStage’s production challenging us to consider the way our knowledge has consequences. Throughout the play, the dichotomy between the young characters and the deeply rooted, traumatic questions they face is underscored by exceptional acting and adept technical choices that push the audience to question themselves. Juxtaposing one’s naivete with their adult experiences poses thought-provoking questions about the nature of truth and knowledge.
