'Those You've Known' SPRING AWAKENING Bids Broadway Farewell

Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater's Spring Awakening, the first musical to be presented by the Atlantic Theater Company, opened June 15th 2006 for a limited run through July 9th at the Atlantic Theater Company (336 West 20th Street). The show, in its world premiere production, began previews on May 19th, from the very first performance audiences knew something special was happening.

As it readies to play its final performance tonight January 18th, 2009, we collected some of our past coverage of the show and give you a chance a look back at just a small slice of the many Spring Awakening highlights in words, pictures and videos.

After beginning previews on Thursday, November 16th 2006, Spring Awakening opened on Sunday, December 10th 2006 at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre (239 W. 49th St.). The star-studded after-party took place at Tavern on the Green. Click here for Curtain Call and Party pictures from way back when the production first took Broadway by storm.

BroadwayWorld checked in with many of the show's talented young stars during the run - here we spoke to Jonathan Groff, who created the role of Melchior in Spring Awakening. Visit this link to read the interview! And here we chatted with Lea Michele, who created the role of Wendla in Spring Awakening - 8 years ago! 

In this exclusive backstage special feature, BroadwayWorld spends time with Alexandra Socha and Matt Doyle. These two talented ensemble members talk candidly about their auditions, singing amongst the onstage audience, performing as Wendla and Melchior and of course, the Spring Awakening fans! Click here to watch! BWW TV also spoke with with Eryn Murman and Blake Daniel. These two talented performers members talked candidly about their auditions, the Spring Awakening fans, on-stage antics and more! Click here to watch now.

On Wednesday, June 6th, 2007  before a matinee, producer/director Richard Jay-Alexander interviewed Spring Awakening's breakout star - Lea Michele, 4 days before the TONY Awards and its fateful sweep as Best Musical for the 2006/2007 theatre season, click this link to watch the informative and emotional feature.

The 2007 American Theatre Wing's Tony Awards, presented by the League of American Theatres and Producers and the American Theatre Wing, aired live from Radio City Music Hall on CBS on Sunday, June 10th 2007. Stars from the worlds of theatre, film and TV strolled down the red carpet before the ceremony! Spring Awakening and The Coast of Utopia were the big winners of the night, winning Best Musical and Best Play respectively. Spring Awakening won eight Tony Awards, and The Coast of Utopia won seven. The Spring Awakening team was there, check this link to see your favorites. Broadway Beat brought you the most comprehensive look at the 2007 Tony Award Nominees in this full half hour special episode! Click here to watch all your favorites including the Spring Awakening team talk about their nominations and see clips from their shows!

On August 2nd 2007 at theatre district hangout Tony's di Napoli, Tony's DiNapoli Times Square unveiled a portrait honoring the Broadway hit Spring Awakening; the picture, by acclaimed artist Dan May, welcomed to Tony's Wall of Fame. Radio personality Valerie Smaldone hosted the event. Tony's is the Times Square restaurant that has begun a tradition of having original oil painting portraits of performers hung all around the restaurant. The cast arrived to see how they looked on the canvas, those pictures are right here. 

On August 8th, 2008 original cast members John Gallagher Jr. (Tony Award Winner) and Lauren Pritchard, current cast members Alexandra Socha and Hunter Parrish and special guest Duncan Sheik performed songs from Spring Awakening Live from the Apple Store SoHo. This event was recorded for the LIVE from SoHo series, an iTunes exclusive. Clich here to see the exclusive pictures.

BWW held a special contest and gave one lucky Spring Awakening fan the opportunity to interview Hunter Parrish when he joined the show as Melchior. The winning contestant was picked to have a Q&A with Hunter live via telephone, well, that is what the contest originally announced, but we had something much more fun in the works, thanks to the very helpful Spring Awakening production offices we had the winner, Linda Buchwald see the show and meet Hunter in person to conduct the interview! She thought she was seeing the performance and then calling him later the following week, because of course we had "set it all up", but in reality she was the one "set up" in the happiest way possible! Needless to say she was thrilled! Click here to read the full scoop. 

In The Flesh', arrived in bookstores in Fall of 2008 and to celebrate the arrival, the book's author David Cote was joined by the show's Tony Award-Winning creators Steven Sater (Book & Lyrics) and Duncan Sheik (Music) on Monday, September 15 and had an informative "conversation" - on the show, the music and its long-running success at The Barnes & Noble Store at the Lincoln Triangle (1972 Broadway @ 66th Street). In addition, cast members from Spring Awakening including Hunter Parrish and Alexandra Socha performed select numbers from the show. Following the presentation the cast and creative team signed copies of the new book, and the Spring Awakening original cast recording. BWW TV caught all the action as the show's creators discussed the story, the songs and the sensation that is Spring Awakening-click here to watch. Click this link for photos of the event.

There was a bit more to applaud during the curtain call at Spring Awakening after the August 21st, 2008 performance, audience member James Beneduce, of Eastern Long Island, took to the stage and asked Jennifer Li, a huge Spring Awakening fan to be his wife. Click here to the pictures!

BLOOD MANOR, NYC's Premier Haunted Attraction: The Nightmare on 27th St., returned with a depraved appetite for gore and a twisted thirst for blood! The cast of the hit musical Spring Awakening, joined by friends and fans, paid a visit to the haunted halls of horror at BLOOD MANOR to see what all the screaming is about! Click here to join them in the scary sights!

Celebrated it's 2nd Annniversary on Broadway, Wednesday, December 10, 2008. The cast and crew marked the special day with a pre-performance anniversary cake prior to the evening show at the theatre. BroadwayWorld.com stopped by to cheer on the very talented cast and crew...and to have some cake see, it here!

Spring Awakening held a special benefit concert to support SafePlace during the 2008 Holiday season. The December 15th concert featured the current cast of the Broadway show as well as special guests, original cast members Tony-Award nominee Jonathan Groff, Lea Michele and Lili Cooper. Click here to view the festive pics.

After an amazing run from Off-Broadway sleeper to Tony © Award-winning Best Musical Spring Awakening, the groundbreaking musical hit, will end its run on Broadway tonight, Sunday, January 18, following the 7pm performance. 

This fall marked the launch of the First National Touring Company, which premiered at the Curran Theatre in San Francisco and opens in Los Angeles at the Ahmanson Theatre on October 30th.The tour's upcoming schedule includes Tempe, AZ, Chicago, Boston, Tampa, Philadelphia, St. Louis, and Washington, DC among many other stops and is currently booked through the end of 2009.

Spring Awakening Production Photos by Joan Marcus