David M. Maslow
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Spring Awakening
Press/Notes

a brilliant fable of sexuality, personal responsibility and individual thought in a time of repressive social values.”
          The River Cities’ Reader
Picture
Cinnamon Schultz as Wendla

Picture
Ernst (Steven Wargo) becomes an adult.
Picture
Melchior before the faculty (Jason Douglas and company)
100 years before it became a musical, Frank Wedekind wrote a crazy, proto-expressionistic play about the cascading failure of parents to protect children and the structures of civil society to support parents. This production is my adaptation of Wedekind’s original text. A shattered fairy tale that begins with innocents at peace with nature and ends quite unnaturally with a headless guy walking around carrying his own head under his arm.
Addressing head-on that it is a play about castes, we created 3 levels of characters:
the children (played by actors in their 20’s), the parents (played by actors on stilts and wearing head pieces to make them some 8 feet tall), and the teachers, priests, etc. – the talking heads of society (played by actors inside 10 foot tall rubber heads). The highly theatrical nature of the production also allowed for an ensemble of puppeteers who controlled everything from the animals in the Edenic opening and Wendla’s (ever-diminishing) cloud of butterflies, to the dance-like movement of the scenic elements and the ominous clicking of the knitting needles that underscored Wendla’s final scene before she is taken off for her ill-fated abortion.

effective…
engaging…
touching…
remarkable”


Iowa City Press-Citizen

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  • Home
  • Director
    • The America Play >
      • America Play Press
      • America Play Credits
    • No Child... >
      • NC Press
      • No Child... Credits
    • See Under: Love >
      • See Under: Love Press
      • See Under: Love Credits
    • Lydie Breeze >
      • Lydie Breeze Press
      • Lydie Breeze Credits
    • The Telephone >
      • Telephone Credits
    • All in the Timing >
      • All in the Timing Press
      • All in the Timing Credits
    • Spring Awakening >
      • Spring Awakening Press
      • Spring Awakening Credits
    • After Dark >
      • After Dark Press
      • After Dark Credits
    • Directing for Academia >
      • Academia Credits
  • Designer
    • Design When I Also Direct >
      • No Child... >
        • NC Press
        • No Child... Credits
      • See Under: Love >
        • See Under: Love Press
        • See Under: Love Credits
      • Lydie Breeze >
        • Lydie Breeze Press
        • Lydie Breeze Credits
      • The Scarlet Letter >
        • Scarlet Letter Press
        • Scarlet Letter Credits
      • The Telephone >
        • Telephone Credits
    • Design Done for Other Directors >
      • Scenery >
        • Disinfecting Edwin >
          • Disinfecting Edwin Press
          • Disinfecting Edwin Credits
        • PICT >
          • PICT Press
          • PICT Credits
        • Orpheus >
          • Orpheus Credits
      • Costumes >
        • Costumes Credits
      • Design for Academia >
        • Academia Credits
  • About
    • Artist Statement
    • Selected Credits
  • Contact