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Spring AwakeningMusic by Duncan Sheik; Book and Lyrics by Steven Sater
Me + You Productions - Lounge Theatre, Los Angeles, August 2018 Directed & Choreographed by Travis Kendrick* Music Direction: Myrona DeLaney Scenic Design: David Goldstein Lighting Design: Martha Carter Costume Design: Sera Bourgeau Sound Design: Franklin Kramer Photography: Gigi Greene *Best Direction Of A Musical - Los Angeles Robby Awards *Best Musical Production - Los Angeles Robby Awards *Outstanding Production Of A Contemporary Musical - Stage Scene LA Scenie Awards *Outstanding Direction And Choreography - Stage Scene LA Scenie Awards |
Press
Spring Awakening
Lounge Theatre, Hollywood
Me + You Productions
Directed & Choreographed by Travis Kendrick
"This thoroughly original vision is as stunningly directed and choreographed as it is strikingly designed and powerfully performed. Director-choreographer Travis Kendrick draws unapologetic parallels between Melchior, Moritz, and Wendla’s world and our own as news anchors’ voices report on the latest mass shooting committed by a societally alienated shooter not all that different from Spring Awakening’s disaffected teens, victims of parental neglect and an educational system that cares more about image than in protecting those in its charge.
Among Kendrick’s inspired touches is having 19th-century characters scrutinizing 21st-century news headlines in a mix of wonder, confusion, and dismay, and a finale that has the musical’s lone remaining protagonist finding, if not hope, then at least moral support from a stageful of 2018 visitors. Kendrick’s choreography is refreshingly original, with special snaps to a 'Touch Me' that eschews the orgiastic for an exquisitely staged set of partner dances underlining these teens’ need not just for sex but for human connection. Travis Kendrick’s Spring Awakening is an all-around stunner."
-Steven Stanley, Stage Scene LA
"This strange and striking show gets an exciting staging at Lounge Theatre, Hollywood, marked by the seamless collaboration of Director/Choreographer Travis Kendrick and an inventive design team. This transfixing resurgence of Spring Awakening arrives with plenty of fresh energy, hormonal heebie-jeebies and furious poignancy intact. Kendrick’s sharp staging expresses that fury in first-act number "The Bitch of Living," in which a classroom of high school-aged boys, simultaneously aroused and tormented by the nascent sexuality their adult superiors refuse to address, erupt in head-banging, jumping, and leaping from chairs."
"Highly, highly recommend!"
-Chris Daniels, The Show Report
"Spring Awakening at The Lounge Theatre is Exactly What America Needs Right Now. Me + You Productions finds the intricate balance of connecting current struggles and honoring the original story. Spring Awakening is often produced with the inconsistent convention of actors using handheld microphones to rock out and share their inner thoughts and desires. But in this production Director Travis Kendrick breaks down that barrier, by taking away the artifice it allows the audience to connect deeper with the story. Kendrick assembles stunning stage pictures and utilizes the ensemble in a Brechtian style. When not directly involved in the scene, actors will sit on the sides of the space and watch, thus exploring the dichotomy of private or intimate things being witnessed by a larger group of people."
-Christopher Castanho, BroadwayWorld
"I was extremely impressed by Kendrick's socio-political spin on Spring Awakening. Furthermore, the amount of sophistication displayed never ceased to astound me."
-Annie Phun, L.A. Times
"A stunning piece of theatre!"
"An extremely talented baker’s dozen of performers under the assured and inspired hand of director/choreographer Travis Kendrick create theatrical magic on the small stage of the Lounge Theatre. Kendrick’s choreography ranges from angry stomping to lyrical ballet movements. The way the hands of one person glides over the body of their partner, the way they meld together is sensually beautiful to behold and truly poetry in motion."
"A production as stellar as this Spring Awakening is a rarity and really deserves a longer run, so others could share in its rapture."
- Rob Stevens, Haines His Way
"The smaller setting brings its character to the audience experiencing this show, rather than projecting stage movement at the crowd far seated. Travis Kendrick stage direction and choreographic movements thrusts this program as a tight production - more timely than ever!"
-Rich Borowy, Accessibility Live Off-line
"The ways this production incorporates current events makes it feel more timely than ever. Director Travis Kendrick and the creative team find clever ways to make a story that takes place so long ago tie in to the modern day."
-Erin Conley, On Stage & Screen
Lounge Theatre, Hollywood
Me + You Productions
Directed & Choreographed by Travis Kendrick
"This thoroughly original vision is as stunningly directed and choreographed as it is strikingly designed and powerfully performed. Director-choreographer Travis Kendrick draws unapologetic parallels between Melchior, Moritz, and Wendla’s world and our own as news anchors’ voices report on the latest mass shooting committed by a societally alienated shooter not all that different from Spring Awakening’s disaffected teens, victims of parental neglect and an educational system that cares more about image than in protecting those in its charge.
Among Kendrick’s inspired touches is having 19th-century characters scrutinizing 21st-century news headlines in a mix of wonder, confusion, and dismay, and a finale that has the musical’s lone remaining protagonist finding, if not hope, then at least moral support from a stageful of 2018 visitors. Kendrick’s choreography is refreshingly original, with special snaps to a 'Touch Me' that eschews the orgiastic for an exquisitely staged set of partner dances underlining these teens’ need not just for sex but for human connection. Travis Kendrick’s Spring Awakening is an all-around stunner."
-Steven Stanley, Stage Scene LA
"This strange and striking show gets an exciting staging at Lounge Theatre, Hollywood, marked by the seamless collaboration of Director/Choreographer Travis Kendrick and an inventive design team. This transfixing resurgence of Spring Awakening arrives with plenty of fresh energy, hormonal heebie-jeebies and furious poignancy intact. Kendrick’s sharp staging expresses that fury in first-act number "The Bitch of Living," in which a classroom of high school-aged boys, simultaneously aroused and tormented by the nascent sexuality their adult superiors refuse to address, erupt in head-banging, jumping, and leaping from chairs."
"Highly, highly recommend!"
-Chris Daniels, The Show Report
"Spring Awakening at The Lounge Theatre is Exactly What America Needs Right Now. Me + You Productions finds the intricate balance of connecting current struggles and honoring the original story. Spring Awakening is often produced with the inconsistent convention of actors using handheld microphones to rock out and share their inner thoughts and desires. But in this production Director Travis Kendrick breaks down that barrier, by taking away the artifice it allows the audience to connect deeper with the story. Kendrick assembles stunning stage pictures and utilizes the ensemble in a Brechtian style. When not directly involved in the scene, actors will sit on the sides of the space and watch, thus exploring the dichotomy of private or intimate things being witnessed by a larger group of people."
-Christopher Castanho, BroadwayWorld
"I was extremely impressed by Kendrick's socio-political spin on Spring Awakening. Furthermore, the amount of sophistication displayed never ceased to astound me."
-Annie Phun, L.A. Times
"A stunning piece of theatre!"
"An extremely talented baker’s dozen of performers under the assured and inspired hand of director/choreographer Travis Kendrick create theatrical magic on the small stage of the Lounge Theatre. Kendrick’s choreography ranges from angry stomping to lyrical ballet movements. The way the hands of one person glides over the body of their partner, the way they meld together is sensually beautiful to behold and truly poetry in motion."
"A production as stellar as this Spring Awakening is a rarity and really deserves a longer run, so others could share in its rapture."
- Rob Stevens, Haines His Way
"The smaller setting brings its character to the audience experiencing this show, rather than projecting stage movement at the crowd far seated. Travis Kendrick stage direction and choreographic movements thrusts this program as a tight production - more timely than ever!"
-Rich Borowy, Accessibility Live Off-line
"The ways this production incorporates current events makes it feel more timely than ever. Director Travis Kendrick and the creative team find clever ways to make a story that takes place so long ago tie in to the modern day."
-Erin Conley, On Stage & Screen
