How do you begin to unpack the nuance, intricacies, and significance of a story that explores what happens when just about every single worst case scenario becomes a reality – particularly for a group of adolescents?

Like so many others, I discovered Spring Awakening during my own adolescence. Listening to the original Broadway cast recording alone felt like rebellion. It wasn’t until I was in high school that I truly understood why young people were so captivated by this story – perhaps leaving Catholic school after ten years had something to do with that. Yes, it is heavy. Yes, it’s intense. In the wise words of our fearless director, Gabi David, if Spring Awakening doesn’t make you uncomfortable, it hasn’t been done well.

There aren’t enough pages in this program to thoroughly articulate the magnitude of each theme this show covers. Instead, I’d like to introduce you to the world you’ve stepped into. This is no longer Emerson College or the year 2025 – this is 19th century Germany. You are no longer an audience member – you are a bystander. Young people suffer from mental illness, sexual abuse, gender nonconformity, religious trauma, blind obedience, violence, misogyny, grief, loss, and more, while the adults around them teach them none of it is real or valid. Sex education does not exist – even when you cry out for it. These children are taught homosexuality is sinful and wrong – a cautionary tale. How are babies born? A woman must love her husband with her whole heart, and a stork will come.

This is where the music comes in.

The original source material of this musical is an 1891 German play entitled Frühlings Erwachen: Eine Kindertragödie (Spring Awakening: A Children’s Tragedy), written by Frank Wedekind. Through this work in particular, Wedekind became the forerunner of the art of expressionism in theatre: expression of subjective emotions, inner experiences, spiritual themes, etc. It is the true and direct opposition of realism. The intention behind this was to contrast the silence from adults and instead scream in their faces. These difficult conversations save lives, and we see what happens without them in both the play and the musical.

This musical adaptation translates that expressionism through a contemporary rock score, creating a powerful juxtaposition that is key to the show’s enduring appeal. You will notice a complete shift onstage the moment a musical number begins – the songs are these characters’ internal monologues, expressed in ways spoken words cannot. The costumes and setting remain rooted in 19th-century Germany, yet the music is suddenly 21st-century American rock. This isn't a historical drama; it’s a timeless look at youth oppression. The music is a cry for help, and a violent act of breaking the fourth wall. While you, the bystanders, are painfully and uncomfortably aware of what these children are going through, the adults turn the other cheek. There is a reason all male adults are portrayed by one actor, and all female adults are portrayed by another. This simplifies them into a single, monolithic, oppressive force – The Adult Man and The Adult Woman. It’s the system embodied.

Spring Awakening is a heartbreaking lesson in what happens when we refuse to talk to our children. Whether you’re a parent, a guardian, a teacher, an older sibling, or a mentor—I implore you to answer the difficult questions. I urge you to put your own discomfort aside. I beg you to listen.

"And one day all will know."

- Savannah Bellon