UNO Prepares for “Spring Awakening”
By Corbin Hirschhorn, KVNO News
November 13th, 2017
Photo Courtesy of UNO Theatre
Omaha, NE—The Weber Fine Arts building is something like a castle on UNO’s campus—four floors of corridors and chambers, brick and turrets. On the top floor, tucked away in a corner room on a Friday night, hidden from any would-be listeners, UNO students and faculty are hard at work on their next theater performance. The show is based on a German play from the 1800s and this room seems fitting, but some modern parlance and swearing give them away. It’s rehearsal for the Tony award winning rock musical, Spring Awakening, directed by Doran Schmidt and Wai Yim.
Through a blend of original rock and folk music, Spring Awakening tells the story of 19th century German youths struggling to understand sex and intimacy in spite of a culture in which the topic is taboo. Between the romance, the musical negotiates serious themes, including abuse and self-harm, which could be uncomfortable to perform without a strong cast relationship.
This is college production, but putting this show together is almost a full time job for the cast. Students from both the Theater department and school of music, as well as two community actors, have been rehearsing almost every night –acting, singing, and choreography—for about two months.
Spring Awakening, directed by Doran Schmidt and Wai Yim will show November 17th and 18th, the 29th and 30th and December 1st and 2nd. Previews of the show are next week, November 15th and 16th. Doors open at 7:00pm with a 7:30 curtain. For more information or tickets, search “UNO Theatre” online.
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