From left: Wendla (Tich Wilson), Moritz (Chris Cook), Melkior (Alexander Keurvorst). Photo by Brendan Albano.

When choosing costumes for Spring Awakening, I thought back to the clothes my mother chose for me when I was a child – durable, washable, comfortable and sweet. The fabrics used in Spring Awakening definitely hearken back to the days of ‘play clothes’ – light cottons and linens suitable for climbing trees and running through fields. The color palate is all in soft earth tones and light pastels.  This is a very physical play for the actors to perform, and as such it’s quite apropos that the costumes would be suitable for young people to play in!

The fanciful aspect comes in in the ‘dress-up’ time in the story.  Laura and I have chosen to have the adult characters played by young actors in the style of children mimicking or mocking their parents and teachers.  The cast thought back to the markers of adulthood as seen through the eyes of a child – a pair of clicking high heels for Melchior’s Mom, a respectable tie for Melchior’s Dad, and a cruelly brandished cane for Headmaster Hart-Payne.  With each actor sporting a play outfit plus up to 5 extra items of clothing for their additional characters, this production will feature over 75 different costume pieces!