Spring Awakening, the play written by Frank Wedekind in 1891, is the inspiration for the Tony Award-winning musical of the same name. It follows a group of teenagers in late 19th century Germany as they discover the secrets their elders have kept about sexuality. Spring Awakening is Crum's directorial debut at Brandeis, and she discussed some of her creative process with justArts.JustArts: Why did you choose Spring Awakening?

Hillary Crum: I chose Spring Awakening because I love it. I fell in love with the musical first, but then I discovered the true beauty that is Frank Wedekind's original script. It's a piece that everyone can relate to, because everyone has been 14 and confused and curious about everything. Everyone, especially at Brandeis, has a little bit of Melchior (the protagonist) in them. Melchior has this over powering thirst to know everything simply because it can be known. Aside from the characters, my other attraction to the piece lies in its insistence on pushing boundaries. When it was first written in the late 1800s, no one would perform it. It was too racy, too risky. The times now are kinder to out-of-the-park craziness in art, but this play still has the ability to make an audience squirm. That's what I love-using theater to make the audience uncomfortable. Because honestly, they'll remember the play that left them with their jaw on the floor longer than the one they gave a standing ovation.

JA: Is this the first show you have directed? What was/were your other show(s) like?

HC: This is my third directing experience, and each time has been completely unique. The first play I directed was a high school one-act. It was called Our Rotten Town and parodied Our Town as well as a bunch of Shakespearean tragedies. That was crazy. I had a cast of 18 high school freshmen. I actually swore never to direct again after that. It was really fun but incredibly stressful, and I liked acting better at that point anyway. That resolution lasted all of a year, maybe. My next directing project was Lights Down, which is a play that I wrote. Working with a script of my own was challenging but rewarding. I had a cast of eight of my friends. We had a lot of fun and ultimately made a pretty great show, if I do say so myself. Having a smaller cast made the whole thing easier, but it was still a little crazy. My high school theater teacher told us that directing was the most stressful thing we would ever do but that it would also be the most fun. It's so true.

JA: What has the rehearsal process been like?

HC: It's just been incredible. I absolutely love watching my cast love this piece. They are deeper into their characters than I could possibly have dreamed. I tried to make it clear from the beginning that I wanted their input, so they give it to me. If I say something and they have a difference of opinion, we'll talk about it. With them, I have come to a better understanding of the piece as a whole. Sometimes the way I see a scene in my head isn't actually the best way to do it; my cast makes me really think about why I'm so set on a certain thing. They challenge me to think harder; it's fantastic. I think the only challenge has been working around everyone's conflicts. Everyone at Brandeis is involved in like 50 different activities.

JA: What are the differences between this version of the play and the musical version?

HC: I want to preface this all by saying that I love the musical. It's what first brought me to the show. That being said, I've been working with the original pretty intensely for a few weeks now, so I have lots of nice things to say about it. The differences between the works are subtle, but they have become more pronounced to me as we delved deeper into the script for the rehearsal process. In general, Wedekind is much kinder to these kids than Duncan Sheik, who wrote the musical. The musical is very sensationalized. Sheik portrays the kids as primarily a bunch of sex-crazed teenagers who really aren't thinking with their brains. It's a lot sillier, which makes the tragic moments feel much more tragic. Musicals as a rule tend to lean toward the overly dramatic. The original script shows, I think, a much more real portrait of 14-year-olds. Wedekind's kids have more dimensions. As far as the plot goes, the shows are very nearly identical.

JA: What about theater do you find so attractive?

HC: Theater is a living, breathing, moving art that can lull you to sleep, make you laugh until you cry or shock you out of your seat. It's such a versatile medium. It is a collaborative process; so many different creative minds are put together for every performance of every show. The script, the acting, the set, the lighting and so many other elements all work together to deliver the message. The audience gets to receive the final product, and the result is usually amazing. Theater people-usually-are so open, so loving, so accepting. It's a great environment in which to work. No idea is ever rejected as being stupid. Anything you can imagine can be made into a performance. There are no limits.