Exceptional upper and downer: 'Primary Trust' and 'Spring Awakening'

Judging by the titles of the two regional productions finishing their runs on local stages, one would think the musical "Spring Awakening" would be the upper and the new Pulitzer Prize-winning "Primary Trust" would be the no-nonsense capitalist downer. It's just the opposite, but both shows certainly win high merits from appreciative audiences. 'Primary Trust' Yes, the title does indeed refer to banking, a significant plot point in Cleveland Play House's amazingly mounted production of Eboni Booth's acclaimed winsome drama-comedy. But as the other meaning of the term emerges by the end of the first act, the audience is reminded that most erstwhile investment in life is in the trust of human relationships. The play opens in a manner that can only be compared to "Our Town." Everyman (and no-man) Kenneth, brilliantly modulated by intuitive actor Debo Balogun, introduces the audience to small-town life in Cranberry. New York, a medium-sized suburb of Rochester, circa 1980s. Only instead of the trappings of early 20th-century Grover's Corners, the highlights of Cranberry include an eclectic bookstore run by a jovial but befuddled owner (played by Christopher M. Bohan, charmingly multidimensional in a potentially one-dimensional role), and a classic Tiki Bar, one of the last vestiges of mid-century suburban exotica, waitressed by a charmingly empathetic potential love interest and true friend, played with surprising emotional depth by Brianna Miller. There's another friend in Kenneth's life, a true pal and spiritual brother who's there when Kenneth loses his job at the bookstore when the owner closes it to move to Arizona, and there to celebrate and cheer up Kenneth as he navigates the ups and downs of his life. This includes getting a job in a bank, which was his late mother's profession. It's headed by a kindly fatherly figure (Bohan, ably double-casted) quickly champions Kenneth in spite of his emotional struggles with personal connections. Here's where "Primary Trust" segues into another classic drama -- "Harvey", about a good-natured man who befriends a possibly imaginary human-size rabbit. In "Primary Trust," Kenneth's life-long friend is ostensibly a smart, dynamic buddy -- endearingly played by Carl Hendrick Louis -- except it turns out (spoiler alert) he's a figment of Kenneth's imagination. He was an un-ghostly apparition, invented by Kenneth when the sole male figure in his life, a kind social worker who oversaw Kenneth's transition from an orphanage to a foster home, essentially disappeared after his professional task in relocating the adolescent Kenneth was completed. Kenneth perseverance through his new life with new friends and a new profession hinges on his ability to put his trust in them. It's not an earth-shattering conceit, but, thanks to Ebony Booth's effusive evocation of humanity in her play, the audience embraces the characters and situations as if they were. The play is as near-perfect as possible, but it is even further enhanced with Sedeeq Heard's extremely well modulated direction and an ingenious set design by Raul Abrego, various assemblages of giant geometric building blocks suggestive of a world seen through childlike eyes and evoking the aesthetics of the 1980s. The cleverness is much apparent, but sheer cleverness never distracts from the core humanity of the heartwarming drama. 'Spring Awakening' It's been 14 years since acclaimed local director Victoria Bussert took her talented students from the Baldwin Wallace musical theater program to the Beck Center for the Arts for the great 2006 Broadway musical about teen angst and sexual repression in early late 19th-century Germany. She's back at Beck with her transplanted musical theater program talents -- now based in Oberlin College -- and the result is even better. A surprise sensation when it opened in New York in 2006 (and also noted for introducing a national audience to TV's "Glee" star Lea Michele), "Spring Awakening" combines two most unlikely elements — a taboo-breaking vintage 1891 drama by Frank Wedekind (not produced until 1906) about the sexual and spiritual repression of teenagers, and an out-and-out unflinching rock-pop score. Regarded by many critics as THE show to finally eclipse the trendy youth-appeal of "Rent," "Spring Awakening" has one the most infectious evocative rock scores since "Hair." Unlike "Rent," which took the basic plot and characters of the Puccini opera "La Boheme" and put them into the milieu of early 1990s bohemian Manhattan, "Spring Awakening" keeps the drama squarely in its original Victorian German confines. The result is a fascinating dichotomy between Duncan Sheik's rock music of modern rebellion (with lyrics by Steven Sater) and Frank Wedekin's spoken (albeit translated) word of archaic repression, circa 1891 Germany. Yet, the modern music eerily reflects the inner-longing of the Victorian teenagers while the century-old message of the book maintains a universality that obviously still speaks to 2026 audiences. And thus comes a bit of a problem: Rock music by its nature paints emotions in basic, bold strokes. This tended to render the characters of "Spring Awakening" as teen archetypes rather than complex personalities. Their struggle to endure the soul-killing ways of parental and institutional control would be all that more haunting and devastating if the audience were to get a more resonant sense of loss. Fortunately, the Beck Center, strikes the right notes that help meld the elements — in more ways than just the cleverly blended off-stage orchestra/band conducted powerfully by Matthew Webb, also of the Oberlin College Conservatory of Music Theater Program. The success continues with Tesia Dugan Benson's dryly accurate period costumes and Trad A Burns striking evocation of German modernism, brilliantly punctuated with streaks of embedded lighting, a remarkable contrast of scenic and costume visual styles. Once again, these talents are not the usual crew at Beck Center; they are in fact part of the seasoned team of director Victoria Bussert and her newly helmed Oberlin College Conservatory of Music Theater Program in what is hopefully a continuing joint venture with Beck Center. As was the case in Beck Center's earlier production, it remains refreshing to see actual students playing the students — rather than the twenty-somethings who populated the Broadway and national tour incarnations. As for the abundant and abundantly talented younger denizens of Beck Center's German village -- divided into two alternating casts -- their vocal and dance skills (with stompingly strident choreography by Lauren Marousek) are rife with energy and just developed enough to bring definition and dimension to the youthful-angst-ridden dialog and songs. It reawakens what this show is truly about. Contact Howard Gollop at howieeg@gmail.com. IF YOU GO WHAT: "Spring Awakening" / Beck Center for the Arts WHEN: Through Sunday (times vary) WHERE: Senney Theater, Beck Center for the Arts, 17801 Detroit Ave., Lakewood TICKETS: $18 to $46 INFO: (216) 521-2540 or BeckCenter.org WHAT: "Primary Trust" / Cleveland Play House WHEN: Through Sunday (times vary) WHERE: Outcalt Theater, next to Ohio Theatre, 1511 Euclid Ave., Playhouse Square, Cleveland TICKETS: $30 to $90 INFO: (216) 241-6000 or boxoffice@clevelandplayhouse.com