The bold, thought-provoking, rock musical “Spring Awakening” graced the stage of Memorial Auditorium while pushing many limits and sending a serious message.

Shippensburg University’s theater group Act V Productions presented the eight-time Tony award winning musical in five shows over this past weekend. “Spring Awakening,” the musical based on Frank Wedekind’s play, takes place in late-19th century Germany. It tells the story of teenagers discovering the ins and outs of sexuality through exploring topics of sex, homosexuality and suicide.

The students in Act V put the entire production together with assistance from theater professor Paris Peet, who offered his expertise when needed. Auditions for the show were held in November and rehearsals began during the first full week of the spring semester.

The cast and crew worked extremely hard over the course of the semester to deliver a strong performance. The show’s director, Christopher Ericson, a senior political science major, is thankful for the group this year and the show they produced.

“The whole production cycle was fantastic,” Ericson said. “The cast and crew were an exceptionally hardworking, passionate and talented group and I think the final product really reflected that. I wouldn’t have traded any of them.”

There were numerous stand-out performances throughout the show, specifically the larger group numbers. With various vocal ranges within the cast of 10, the numbers “Totally F**ked” and the girl’s group number “Mama Who Bore Me (Reprise)” were a strong representation of the talent amongst this group. Leads Gabrielle Sheller, who played Ilse, and Olivia Dallas Johnson, who played Martha, also received a lot of praise from the audience after their performance of “The Dark I Know Well,” a number used by the characters to express their abusive home situations.

The cast was a very strong, close-knit group of students scattered in class years. It was not a senior dominant cast, as new, young talent joined Act V this year.

For others, “Spring Awakening” was their final show at SU. There were six seniors in the musical: Christopher Ericson, director; Gabrielle Sheller, Ilse; Nicholas Ecker, music coordinator/Georg/pianist; Tim Hippensteel, Melchior; Matt Kline, guitar; and Alexandra Jones, Act V’s technical director.

Sheller remains in disbelief that this was her final show with people whom she has spent the past four years acting with at SU.

“It’s incredibly heartbreaking knowing I took my final bow on Memorial Auditorium’s stage. But, I think what is most saddening is the fact I have to leave the people I shared that stage with,” Sheller said. “I’ve seen so many people come and go through the years and through different shows. Now that it’s my turn to leave, it’s surreal.”

In the weeks leading up to opening night, the cast and crew remained in sync as best they could and dedicated themselves fully into the production, regardless of anything thrown their way. Positivity was a large influence in rehearsals, which was clearly displayed in the final product of “Spring Awakening.”

“There are inevitably a lot of obstacles that you run into putting on a production of this scale,” Ericson said. “The key is to remain optimistic, and trust in the people you’re working with.” 

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