To mark the release of his new book A Purple Summer: Notes on the Lyrics of ‘Spring Awakening’ (Applause), two-time Tony Award winner Steven Sater sat down with original cast members Jonathan Groff and Lauren Pritchard to reminisce about the show’s origins.
Groff, who went on to receive a Best Actor Tony nomination for his performance as Melchior, recalls sitting silently around a table with his young co-stars before rehearsals began for the first workshop. “Everyone was scared,” he said. “We could feel, ‘This is something major.’” Agreed Pritchard, who co-starred as free-spirited Ilsa, “We could feel the severity” of the material.
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