Jan. 13--On Saturday, the Marriott Theatre in Lincolnshire is opening "Spring Awakening."
That would not appear to be unusual. The 900-seat Marriott, a long-standing commercial operation, produces Broadway musicals. And the 2006 musical adaptation of the Frank Wedekind play is, demonstrably, a popular Broadway musical that won eight Tony Awards. So popular is the show, which features music by Duncan Sheik and book and lyrics by Steven Sater, it has been revived on Broadway. Last fall, a new Broadway production, created by a company called Deaf West Productions and performed by hearing and non-hearing actors, began playing at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre (it closes Jan. 24). It has enjoyed a fervent following, especially among teenagers and college students.
So on the Broadway that now accommodates titles like "Hamilton," "American Idiot" and "Fun Home," "Spring Awakening" is a pretty mainstream attraction.
But at the Marriott, it's perceived as a risk. A big leap of faith.
This is perhaps understandable. A year-round professional operation, the Marriott has a mostly older subscriber base that generally expects revivals of classic Broadway titles, sprinkled with occasional new works. The theater cannot afford to alienate this subscriber base -- which is, by the standards of any arts organization, both habitual and massive. Some 30,000 people reliably purchase subscription tickets to this theater-in-the-round. And those who run the Marriott are very invested in their ongoing happiness. After all, they pay the bills and keep the place in business.
But time marches on.
Thus Terry James, who runs the theater, also knows that he has to renew that audience and attract younger ticket buyers. And he also has to keep happy an artistic team that wants very much to engage with some of the more challenging titles in the repertory -- such as "Spring Awakening," which has a rock-fused score and deals with issues of teen sexuality and the consequence of inadequate sex education.
Thus, for the first time in more than 30 years, the Marriott this weekend deviates from its traditional model of all-subscription musicals running for nine weeks or more. This new production of "Spring Awakening," occupying a traditionally slow and frozen part of the annual calendar for the theater business, will live and die based on single ticket sales. It is not part of the Marriott's subscription series. And it's only playing for three weeks.
"Really, the only difference between this show and all of our other shows is the subject matter," James said in an interview this week. He said the show was offered to subscribers, some of whom have taken up the theater on its offer. But at a theater where the vast majority of seats are sold for every show before opening night, James is having to do something new as many seats are still to be sold. "Word of mouth," he said, "is going to be very important."
The man who was itching to do this show is Aaron Thielen, co-artistic director of the Marriott. Thielen is director and choreographer of the Marriott production (the original Broadway director was Michael Mayer, with Bill T. Jones creating the acclaimed original choreography). Thielen said he had been impressed by the surge in "very young talent" in the Chicago market, especially actors coming from the city's several professional training programs. This is a chance, he said, to put that talent to work. The show will star Patrick Rooney as Melchior, Ben Barker as Moritz and Eliza Palasz as Wendla. Hollis Resnik and Kevin Gudahl are playing the authority figures.
So far, James said, "Spring Awakening" has sold around 40 percent of the available inventory, which isn't bad, given the capacity of the theater and the departure from its usual practice of relying on subscriptions. It remains to be seen where things will go from here. One interesting question will be whether or not the area's high school students will find the show and the theater -- if they do, of course, James and Thielen are hoping they will return for the regular offerings, which may eventually change the definition of "regular" at the Marriott.
Which would not be a bad thing.
We'll have a review at the end of the weekend.
"Spring Awakening" runs through Jan. 31 at the Marriott Theatre, 10 Marriott Drive, Lincolnshire; 847-634-0200 and marriotttheatre.com
Chris Jones is a Tribune critic.
cjones5@tribpub.com
