1472 – Spring Awakening Butterfly

Episode 1472 – Spring Awakening Butterfly

 

SCOOTER: Friends beyond the binary, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, it’s time for the podcaster who’s here to wax…mind my beeswax. I don't actually know what that phrase means, but I…then I say, wax…lax…wax poetically. I don't…there’s…isn’t there wax…a word like rhapsody? Wax rhapsody…Wax Rhapsody; that could be a business, a very niche business. We could also do nails and other things. I don't know if those two things are…I don't know if waxing and — anyway — rhapsody are associated with one another. The reason is I was just waterproofing my shoes. So, I was saying…so, I was thinking of wax. Whatever wax…I make about as much…my thoughts melt away like wax and are pretty malleable. But you say, what are you making out of that lump of wax? Oh, yeah, you noticed this. Do you like my lump of wax? Yeah, I’ve been working on this…I've been working on making this wax into a lump.

 

Now, if you're confused, by the way, welcome to Sleep With Me, the podcast that’s here to put you to sleep in a sense, but in a very different and unexpected way if you're new here. We kinda just hang out together, make bedtime more comfortable, more pleasant, a nice place to be, and I keep you company so you could fall asleep versus putting you to sleep directly. This is a show with no pressure to fall asleep. I’m your friend in the deep, dark night. That does take some getting used to when you're new. The thing is, a lot of people listen to the show just when they need it, and then there’s people that listen to the show all the time. If you're new, just discover what works for you. See how it goes. It does take two or three tries. You say, oh, this is a podcast for me right now. This is the podcast that’s gonna be…this podcast will be a regular part of my routine, or, oh, no thank you. I’ll explain more, even how to find other sleep podcasts that may work better for you if this one doesn't, if you give it a couple tries.

 

So, I’m glad you're here. What we got coming up is support, sponsors and listener support requests, so that paying for the show is optional, 'cause it doesn't make sense for most people, but most people…but the show benefits so many people, and I’m proud of that. Then there’s a long, meandering intro totally separate from the support that’s a show within a show meant to ease you into bedtime or set the mood for bedtime, and then later on it’ll be a bedtime story which will be kind of about a performance of a musical that I visited with Bernie the butterfly. The musical is Spring Awakening. We dance our way through Spring Awakening, but if for some reason you have a strong connection to Spring Awakening, you could always skip this episode. There’s 600+ shows available anywhere, anytime. If you're on Sleep With Me+, there’s thousands of things to listen to. But I think this will help. It’s a nice story. I don't want to say I’m the first person to visit a musical…I didn't visit the musical…to have a guest.

 

By the way, he did not have a ticket, but Bernie the butterfly did join me. The first person to bring a butterfly to a musical. I don't know the…is there a Tony Award for that? I don't know. There probably shouldn't be. Well, it could be like a one-time award. Yeah, I mean, just do it once. I wouldn't call…I don't think it’s a Lifetime Achievement Award. Also, it’s…would be…this would be the first fictional…it wouldn't be the first fictional Tony to be given out, but…yeah, I got a Lifetime Fictional Tony Award for the first person ever to bring a butterfly to a musical. How exactly is that an accomplishment? Oh, it was for…to help people fall asleep and keep them company and to really discover some softness at bedtime, and a little bit of silliness, 'cause that’s what I yearn and delight, to bring you a little sleepy joy and delight in the deep, dark night. I think I used ‘delight’ twice, 'cause I forgot how…anyway, welcome to Sleep With Me. I’m glad you're here. If this podcast changes your life on a nightly basis, if you could please consider supporting one of these sponsors or the show directly, that’s how we're able to be here on a nightly basis. That’s how we're able to be here consistently for you and everybody else that listens. Thanks.

 

Intro: Hey, are you up all night tossing, turning, mind racing? Trouble getting to sleep? Trouble staying asleep? Well, welcome. This is Sleep With Me, the podcast that puts you to sleep. We do it with a bedtime story. Alls you need to do is get in bed, turn out the lights, and press Play. I’m gonna do the rest. What I’m going to attempt to do is create a safe place where you could set aside whatever’s keeping you awake. That could be thoughts on your mind, thoughts about the past, the present, the future, thoughts you're thinking about, thoughts that are just there, it could be feelings, anything coming up for you emotionally related to those thoughts, related to the day or the past, the present, the future, physical sensations, changes in time, temperature, routine, work schedule, maybe you work a different schedule, maybe your schedule changed, maybe you're in the middle of something, going through something, getting over something, or maybe it’s just something baffling.

 

Whatever it is, I’m glad you're here and I really hope I can help you out and offer some relief, some comfort, a mild distraction. The only reason I list some of the things that I’ve heard from listeners or experienced myself is that I do want you to know that I am glad you're here, and thousands and thousands of other people around the world are glad you're here, and that maybe this show can help you out in the night and take your mind off of stuff, because you do deserve a bedtime where you could get the rest you need so your life is more manageable tomorrow and that you could get the rest you need on a regular basis so that you could be out there in the world living your life, and that you have a bedtime you don't have to dread anymore if you're anything like me and you know how it feels.

 

When I call it the deep, dark night, you know what that feels like, even if you're in a house full of people or you share a room with somebody, how there’s something that changes in the deep, dark night, and it’s not easy. You could get the sense there is this togetherness about this show, and it’s the best kind of togetherness in my opinion, 'cause it’s indirect, interconnected but indirect togetherness. I forgot what word I was using. What do I mean by that? That people around the world are listening right now in this moment, and some of those people have experienced something similar to whatever it is that brought you to the show, and they have a deep — I don't know what unabiding means, but I think it might fit in this situation — understanding of what it felt like for them and probably what it feels like for you at least on some level, and they feel for you, really right now.

 

It’s okay if you don't believe it or you say, well, I’d prefer to be two steps removed from this interconnectedness or togetherness. I say, don't worry. That’s…we're together alone and we're alone together here on this show. But there’s people thinking fondly of you, sending you kindness and comfort from around the world, and they do that because they get it, they've been there, and however this show has helped them out and offered them some relief or comfort or distraction or rest, they're not just grateful for me making the show or whatever; they know they're a part of something, that there really is this togetherness with this show, and it’s kinda the most important part, and that there is something real about rooting for somebody else to get a good night's sleep or have some relief, and they get a good experience sending that kindness out. You can send it, you can receive it, or you could do both, whatever works. There’s no pressure at all.

 

But that’s what we all mean when we say we're glad you're here, so that maybe you have a bedtime that you could look forward to or at least feel neutral about and say, well, at least I got that show. I know it’s not the…it’s like that boring dude. So, at least I got that. So, that’s the important part about the show. The way it works, though, is I send my voice across the deep, dark night. I use lulling, soothing, creaky, dulcet tones, pointless meanders, and superfluous tangents, and I go off topic, I get mixed up, I forget what I was talking about…wax rhapsodic? Is it rhapsodic? I don't know why that just popped in my head. What popped in my head is a common thing that comes up in this podcast whenever wax comes up, which is like, once upon a time people…now, don't worry, there’s no turtles involved in this directly, but there was this stuff called turtle wax, 'cause it was for waxing your shell, which was your car.

 

I guess I get the idea, but I always tell people, don't…by the way, turtle wax; not for waxing any turtles or tortoises, any shelled beings at all ever. Turtles; don't wax them. Mother Nature does just fine. Turtles; we don't need any waxing unless it’s part of our care protocol from someone that knows what they're doing. Turtle wax; not for turtles. Nothing to do with turtles other than it’s a mascot. I mean, I guess it was like…did something…something about…Tony, the character on the cereal, wasn't…did that come up somehow in this…? I was talking about earlier…I was picturing him, too. There’s a cereal, Frosted Flakes. It has this fuzzy friend named Tony. You say, okay, don't feed that to fuzzy friends. That’s pretty obvious, but I don't know why turtle wax…I'm like, turtle wax; it’s…by the way, once again, not for…don't wax turtles or tortoises or armadillos or Ankylosauruses. How come…you'd be like…who would…if it was possible, they say, sir, wait a second, you're the sleep podcast guy, right?

 

Correct. Okay, walk us through this again. Well, yeah, I was over…I was out adventuring. I was on a meander. Okay, where? Oh, in this mysterious area based in reality, though. Okay. This is an important thing; I went on a meander 'cause I didn't feel like waxing my car, but I was feeling some sort of internal performance thing that I was supposed to wax my car, that it would fix all my problems. Well, yeah, you look like the kinda guy who’s never waxed a car except under…yep, you got that right. Except, yeah, when it was required for an allowance or something. So, I had a backpack full of wax. Turtle wax? Yeah, as a matter of fact, it was. It was like the…Aldi’s never had a version of it, but it was…they called it…well, it was briefly there 'cause they called it tort wax. I don't know…I think ‘tortoise’ is just too many letters. But then apparently someone…apparently I decided to wax a tort, and no…that was…I didn't…I just waxed it and put it out to see if it would be rain-proof.

 

Okay, anyway, you encountered an Ankylosaurus, which is not the…and you waxed it? I did, 'cause I said, well, you're like a turtle. Do you want to be friends? Maybe I could wax you. You realize this creature hasn't been seen on the planet Earth, and now it won't be because the wax…well, how do…how was I supposed to know that? Well, on your podcast you consistently say turtle wax is not for turtles or tortoises. Yeah, but I figured this Ankylosaurus had been…I thought it would cheer it up, 'cause it did look a little frowny-faced. Okay, anyway, you better move on with your sleep podcast. You're right, because I got…that was a pointless meander I just went on, and a superfluous tangent. So, yeah, that’s the kinda things that come up on the show in order to take your mind off of stuff and put you to sleep. It works differently.

 

But when you first get here, you may be skeptical, you may be doubtful, but you'll probably be frustrated, 'cause maybe you found the show through a recommendation or a search or whatever it is, and this show is probably different than what you expected. Like, you probably had a reasonable expectation of what a sleep podcast would be, and you said, wait a second, this isn't anything like I…and that’s okay. This show is a bit different. It does take a couple tries to get used to. That’s just what people said over the…over and over the years. So, just give it a few tries and see how it goes. Most people are like, oh, at first I didn't like the show or I didn't know…I didn't get it. Then on the second time I was like, wait a second, together alone, alone together? That kinda makes sense to me, but it doesn't also…it doesn't make sense. Then, what about that turtle…? I woke up; I was thinking about a turtle driving a cute car. Then I realized, oh, he’s always going nowhere.

 

So, it just takes some getting used to for the show, 'cause whatever you expected, this is different than that. I’m just hanging out with you, right? But you don't have to like me or the show, and I have…so, if you listen two or three tries or you already know, don't worry. We have a website set up, sleepwithmepodcast.com/nothankyou, where we have other sleepy stuff out there. So, see how it goes with that. What else do you need to know? Yeah, just see what happens. If you decide you don't like the show or it doesn't work or I’m not a fit, go to sleepwithmepodcast.com/nothankyou. There’s other sleep podcasts on there. Otherwise see how it goes. The other thing or one of the other things that takes getting used to is this is a sleep podcast and it’s a podcast you don't exactly…you don't listen to it or not listen to it.

 

It’s kinda like elevated background noise, a TV on in the other room, a show streaming under your pillow or on your nightstand that you're just kinda barely listening and paying attention to, sand passing through your hands, clouds in the sky, a call with a friend that just goes on and on and on, wind in the trees or nice water running between your toes, or like, yeah, a seminar or a professor or a presentation that you just can't stay awake for. You're kinda listening but you're also kinda drifting off. It’s a bit different. So, it’s a podcast that’s here, but you don't need to listen to it, but you could listen to it. It’s also a sleep podcast, and I’m not here to put you to sleep. There is no pressure to fall asleep with this show. I’m gonna be here over an hour, so you don't have to worry about when you fall asleep if…in fifteen or twenty minutes, I’m still gonna be here keeping you company. There’s no pressure to fall asleep.

 

There’s over 600 shows, and I’m here to the very end of the show whether you're awake or asleep, because there’s some people listening who can't sleep at all or they need a break during the day, they wake up in the middle of the night, they have a job where they just need something to listen to. So, I’m here for them and for you whether you're listening or not, 'cause my job is to be your bore-friend, your bore-bae, your neighbore, your borebie, your boreman, your borer, your Boris Borelaf, your chairman of the boreds, your Jeff Laboreski or Big Laboreski…I think Jeff Laboreski sounds…you're big, boring Baboreski, your bore-sib, your bore-cuz, your bore-bae, your best bore-friend f’eva. A bore-friend just hangs out with you while you fall asleep, keeps you company, a little bit like a sleepover or something or a roommate or a friend. Your bore-friend is here for you to be a mild distraction or a misdirection from whatever it is.

 

The only other thing I like to run through is the structure of the show, 'cause it really does throw new listeners off. But the show is structured in a very specific way. It starts off with a greeting; friends beyond the binary, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, so you feel seen and welcomed in. Then there’s a long, meandering intro, then there’s support so that paying for the show is optional, 'cause most people benefit from this free version of the show, and that’s what benefits the maximum amount of people. Then after the support is a long, meandering intro totally separate from the support, and the intro goes on and on and on. It’s like fifteen to twenty-five minutes long where I try to introduce what the podcast is, but I go on tangents. I follow a familiar structure every time, but every intro is new so that you have something reassuring but with variety. Those are the two things I’ve found for me and a lot of people that listen to the show that work best, is the balance of those things.

 

The intro also serves another purpose, which is it’s not meant to put you to sleep. A lot of people are listening while they're winding down, while they're getting ready for bed, while they're doing some sort of other chill activity like doodling, lying on the floor, looking out the window at the sky, knitting, hooking…is counter…not counterpoint; it’s…no, different things with their hands that’s also relaxing but chill. They're winding down. The intro is also kinda like a part of the sleepover after the peak, the post-peak sleepover when we're kinda still chatting but we're all kinda at ease. Yeah, and the intro is just meant to be a buffer between being awake and being asleep, and that’s…having a wind-down routine outside of my bedroom is one of the things that kind of has worked for me on a regular basis. So, just see how it goes as far as that goes. But that’s what the structure of the show is meant to do, have the intro, then there will be some support, then there will be a story.

 

Tonight it’ll be Bernie and I talking about Spring Awakening and musicals and butterfly…what it’s like…a butterfly’s perspective of the world. All told, we’ll be here about an hour to ease you into bedtime and maybe help you fall asleep or maybe just take your mind off of stuff so you could fall asleep, or relieve things if you can't sleep or you do wake up. I’m here either…any of those ways. So, just see how it goes. If you…oh, also, if you like just the stories and not the intros, we have another podcast that just has stories, Bedtime Stories from Sleep With Me. But most people like the intros. It’s when we all hang out together. But I’m really glad you're here. I work really hard on this show. So do a bunch of other people. We yearn and strive. We really want to help you fall asleep. Thanks again for coming by, and here's the ways we're able to be here for you every week, week after week, year after year, if the show…if that’s how you…if you rely on the show in that way. Thanks.

 

Alright everybody, this is Scoots here, and this is…this should be a interesting, fun episode, I think. This is kind of a random Trending Tuesday-esque episode, I’d say. So, I’m gonna have…I think we're gonna have Bernie the butterfly on, though a year or two years ago we were supposed to have him on, and then he came on a month or two later. But this is also a episode about a musical. I don't know if it’ll be about the whole musical, but it’s about the musical…or performances of the musical Spring Awakening. Again, I got to see this musical multiple times. This was at Le Moyne College. It was a wonderful, wonderful staging and performance of a musical I had not seen before and that I was unfamiliar with. So, I highly suggest if you're into musicals or listening to cast recordings to check it out. When you check it out, you'll be like, holy cow. Not just with the music but when you see the names of who’s on the cast album. I mean that in a positive way.

 

But I’ll just read briefly…we're definitely gonna…well, I don't know where this is gonna go, because it already…it’s already like…believe it or not, it’s about natural and organic things. But first let me bring up…I'm just gonna read through the Wikipedia page on it. Okay, so, it’s a twenty…the musical is twenty years old. It’s a coming-of-age rock musical. The music is by Duncan Sheik, and the book and lyrics are by Steven Sater. It’s based on a 1891 play, Spring Awakening, and it’s set in 19th century Germany, and it’s about a way…how teens navigate their own awakening, both on the inside and the outside. It’s kind of got a mix of…it’s got really, really…I mean, the songs and the performances on the version I saw at the School of Visual Performing Arts was…Le Moyne was amazing, but…and was students across all majors, I think. But yeah, let’s run through it. It was…the concept was in the late 1990s.

 

Workshops, concerts, rewrites…they had a off-Broadway debut and then an original Broadway production that premiered in December 2006. I’ll let you discover the talent, because I think it’ll be funner for anybody that’s not…it won eight Tonys, the original Broadway production, including Best Musical Direction, Book, Score, and Featured Actor, Four Drama Desk Awards, a Grammy Award. It was revived in 2015, and of course I just lost my page. I believe either in 2015 they may have had a documentary about it. I’m not sure. I’ve been…a fifteen-year reunion was released in 2022. Okay, I’m not gonna run…I'm gonna…I'll set this up, 'cause I do see Bernie’s arrived at the studio. So, let me tell you the why. So, yeah…okay, I got clearance to keep talking. So, we’ll get Bernie…oh, by the way, if you're new to Sleep With Me or you only listen occasionally, about once a year, every other year — he’s hard to get — is Bernie the butterfly. He is a real butterfly.

 

This would be newsworthy everywhere else but Sleep With Me. He is I guess maybe the only butterfly that I know of that’s fluent in the English language and has full sentience, also likes sports drinks or hydration drinks. Don't know about any…he’s actually the only butterfly I’m familiar with, and he’s also known…he appeared on early days of the podcast. He actually appeared before Ray Perkins, my neighbor. Bernie, he’s a little bit rough around the edges. I think that if you've ever seen the movie Scrooged, he’s a bit like the cab driver in the movie Scrooged, played by David Johansen, Johansen. Bernie’s shrugging. Now he’s shaking his head.

 

Okay, so, I got to see this performance multiple times, and somewhere, usually around halfway through…when I see him…when I’ve been lucky enough to see these youth musicals or musicals performed by young adults…and after I’ve seen it one-and-a-half times or two times, usually after the second performance I can really start to notice more and more nuance, maybe get…it just takes me that long to really…I mean, I get the big themes, then I get the kinda musical themes, and then I start to notice more and more. But I kinda invited him on the…after the first performance I said, hey, I think you should come with me to this musical. To be honest, it wasn't based on the musical. So, when Bernie’s come on the show…the first time Bernie appeared on the show, it was…I can't…I'm usually wrong about all these things. But I believe it was to just…he lived in the back…so, the…I used to live in this house that was actually four apartments.

 

Once upon a time it was a house, then it was broken into four one-bedroom apartments. Next to it, which is pretty rare, was an empty lot, which was overgrown and butterfly-friendly. That’s where I met Bernie. He lived in the lot next door, or the yard. We gardened it briefly. So, that’s how I got to know Bernie the butterfly. But he found out about the podcast. Even in the early days of Sleep With Me, it was pretty experimental. He wanted to come on and express his strong feelings about the song that opens Reading Rainbow, because…and he kind of…and again, I’m just using my own words, Bernie. He took exception to the fact that LeVar…he believed that LeVar Burton…so, there’s a thing; butterfly in the sky, I can fly twice as high. For him, I think I could restate it in this way; that kinda summed up human beings’ relationships with butterflies. Now he’s nodding.

 

He heads a segment called Nature Talks Back, where he liked to come on and…so, what I…so, then…so, that’s how he became a part of the show, occasionally, because he’s…I mean, we would have him on every episode, but he’s just so busy mostly consuming media. He’s probably…I mean, I don't know what the records are, but he’s been…as far as I know…I met him in 2013, 2014? And he’s…I mean, that’s…I don't know many butterflies that can claim…now, he doesn't…he usually lives indoors now, and he also…he’s kind of like a little bit…oh no, he’s not like a human being; okay, he’s telling me. He’s not like a human being, but…and he’s not anthropomorphized because he’s real. He shrugged at that one. Okay, so, I invited Bernie to come…now, I don't bring up a lot of cute things on the podcast, but sneaking a sentient butterfly into a musical…'cause you can't buy a ticket for the butterfly 'cause then it becomes a whole…what do you mean, you got a talking butterfly?

 

Or what if someone…you say, is that seat open? No, there’s a sentient butterfly in that seat. So, what I do is I put him in my pocket, and, yeah, you know. Now, over the years I put him in a solo cup in my pocket, which again becomes a whole thing, 'cause I’m…but we’ve gotten it down, or some sort of bottle not with a top, 'cause I am a bit clumsy. But Bernie’s very adaptable. So…okay, so there’s a song in the second act, the second song of the second act of this musical, where butterflies came up. I guess…I had only seen the musical once, so I said…and it’s really a good song, so I said…and it was one of the…I don't know. If you just read about the musical, then you'll have…you gotta experience it. So, when I say fun song, it was a fun song. Or the performance of it was fun, and butterflies were mentioned in it. So, I said, well, there’s something Bernie’s not gonna like. So, why don't I invite him to come on the show and talk about the song?

 

I thought that…I thought the rest of the musical maybe he would formulate some opinion of. So, I guess I’ll bring Bernie on and then we’ll talk about…'cause…oh, 'cause then…it didn't go how I planned. I think I said that. So, Bernie, why don't you come on and say…? Hello, hello, hello everybody. This is Bernie the butterfly here. Good to be here in your ears with the pod boy. Yeah, nice to meet all of you. Oh, Scooter told me to try to use my inside voice because you humans are getting ready for bed there. I want to make sure you're nice and comfortable there. Now, I’m…yeah, so I’m here to talk back on Nature Talks Back, but yeah, what I’m gonna tells you is that the good news is this musical kinda does it for me. But Scooter, in all his human wisdom there, he…boom, he always says, don't do that, Bernie. ‘Cause I say, nature talks back; boom, because I like to say on behalf of nature, I’m not so sure about you humans, Scooter. Now, in the past here I’ve been…I come on the show.

 

I’m gonna have to use my normal voice a little bit, but in the past I come on the show to talk about boy bands, and I’m always happy to do that because that’s what I like. But this musical, oh boy, this had…this was not a musical about boy bands, though there are musicals about that. But Scooter…so, Scooter thought, oh, I’m so…it’s gonna be so funny. I’ll bring Bernie on and then he’ll listen to this song there, and then I’ll get all upset about it and I’ll take it out on these wonderful performers who were representing something natural and wonderful. ‘Cause Scooter, for some reason, he didn't…he thought he knew the message, and he’s…oh, well…I think this…I could speak; he didn't say this out…oh yeah, I’m on the good side. I’m on the right side of this…and I say, this is about parents versus kid. I say, oh boy, you don't get…you'd understand it, do you? So, Scooter thought…now, Scooter did say to me, Bernie, now which character…?

 

I said, oh boy, I don't know if you'd be in…I don't think you'd…you'd have been…but what he wanted me to say was that Scooter would be Moritz Stiepel, Moritz Shteeple, is how…I don't know how to say it. But that’s…he’s…there’s a kind of of a trio of…I'm not…this is actually the first musical I’ve ever had the pleasure of attending. But there’s kind of three characters that share the spotlight, so to say; Wendla, Moritz, and Melchior. Now, the song Scooter had me sing was song by Moritz Stiepel, and I think Scooter thought it was funny because a character is a bit like Scooter, and when Scooter was Moritz’ age, because they're both…the relationship with school and authority figures is somewhat complex. Now, also, Moritz is…what an opportunity for a performer to perform any of these roles.

 

But this particular role, it really has some range, some singing range, some really great songs to sing, and yes, he does have a little bit…he’s there for a little bit of the humor, which you find in the…just like a butterfly; we don't tell…in the midst of humans you gotta find some humor because…holy cow, these humans, am I right? So…but first I’d like to do something a little bit different, Scooter, if you will. Why don't you come on and pretend you thought how I was gonna react to things. Why don't you do a little Bernie the butterfly, and I’ll set it up like I’m the pod boy, and you pretend you're Bernie the butterfly and you listen to this song, and we haven't discussed any things? Okay. Okay, hello everybody, I’m…welcome to the sleep show. I’m so happy to be here and put you to sleep and to be your friend in the deep, dark night. All you humans need your rest tomorrow so you can get out there in the world and do human stuff. Hooray, humans.

 

So, we have a special guest tonight, Bernie the butterfly, who’s…oh boy, he doesn't understand what subtext is, and he’s just really upset about this musical and this poor kid Moritz Stiepel singing, and Bernie wanted to come on to talk about it. I don't think I…please, Bernie, go ahead. Please don't do a imitation of me as the host. I’m Scooter. You're Bernie. Okay. Hey, how you doing, everybody? Bernie, do you have a cold? You don't sound like yourself. Well, I’m Bernie the butterfly over here, yous guys. Okay, Bernie, go ahead with the…tell us about the song you saw. Okay, so, the second act there opens, and Moritz is sing…first we have a song from Wendla and Melchior and the entire cast of child…young adults, where they kind of reinforce the theme of the show, or almost double down on it, of how the adults view the world and how they think the world should be, and then the teens, young adults, trying to navigate it. I thought since this…I was here to talk about the second song.

 

I better talk about the first song in the second act first. So, how do I…? So, yeah, I guess I should just move on to the second song. Oh, but so, the adult…I can't…who’s an authority figure as well, says that children should show…they could never even show their gratitude to the adults who are trying to show them the way by not showing them the way. I mean, what if the adults are just as confused as the kids? Oh, well, Bernie, they're in…the adults are in a position of authority, so…but they…the children are not pretending to know better. The adults are. So, if the adults were confused, they should have just sung about that instead of behaving as authority figures. Oh, thanks…I mean, thanks, Scooter. So, anyway, then they kinda…this authority figure representing all the authority figures in the play or parental figures says…kinda uses…they're trying to subtly exert authority over the children, and putting your mother, your father, your mother figures, your father figures first, as well as teachers and belief systems and all those things.

 

Meanwhile there’s just two young adults trying to navigate their feelings organically through this sweet and unknown, as Wendla sings. Then they all sing, and who can say what dreams are and who could say what we are? This is the season for dreaming. The song is even titled something about how the adults are making them feel, but not in a way…in a way to kind of attempt to control their behavior. But they're saying, we don't even know what behavior…we don't even have full understanding of what you're trying…all of us…we're not work…we're not dealing with things on a honest basis over here. Yeah, Bernie, I almost forgot you were talking there. So, a very nice song to open it up. It leaves…picks up right where Act 1 left off. Also, Act 1 has a lot of very subtle foreshadowing, though when you go into this musical, there’s usually so much talk around it that…and I understand the talk around it, but that…over here, that it does take away from the experience of it a little bit, or for me and Bernie…I mean…oh, me and Scooter, we were like, okay, was this talk really…?

 

This is a tale about young adulthood and making the journey into it, and of course these are the themes that are gonna come up. I don't know what my point was with that other than to say that…oh, the foreshadowing does a good job. Like, if you went into it not knowing some of the themes, that they do respectfully tell you about just in case you'd prefer not to…you know, that…it makes sense. I guess I'm just saying in my opinion. I don't know what would have happened if we went into it without knowing anything. But yeah, then Melchior sings…Wendla’s…and the whole cast say what dreams are. Wake me in time to be out in the cold, and who could say what we are? This is the season of dreaming. Really, the song’s also talking about how confusing all of this is, I believe, over here. But then that song ends, right, with still the authority figure saying more things, and the authority figure’s trying to talk kind of in subtext.

 

Hidden from ourselves…even from ourselves the secret bargains we’ve made. And…but real…and so, Moritz says over here, please cease this nonsense. Also…I guess I’ll let you figure…go see the musical, 'cause it’s probably being performed by young adults near you or maybe even adults near you, or maybe adults that are young at heart or young adults or touring. But Moritz, this is kind of…and I think it’d be interesting to see other stagings of this. But our Moritz was kind of a little bit of AC/DC-style of presenting these songs, which are somewhat rocking. Not somewhat rocking; very rocking. Then Scooter said to me, Bernie, aren't you going to be upset about this…these lyrics? I said, oh boy, tell me more. Bernie, could I just interject? You're really going on and on and on, and there’s a lot to talk about, so why don't you get to the lyrics and…so we can move forward? Okay, Scooter, over here.

 

Awfully sweet to be a little butterfly just winging over things, nothing deep inside, nothing going wild in you, you know? You’re just slowing by the riverside or floating high and blue. So, as a butterfly I would have said, whoa, whoa, whoa, maybe it’s not so sweet to be a butterfly, Moritz. You don't even know what it’s like, eh? B, maybe there’s…we do have feelings inside. You're just imagining…Bernie, this kinda feels like nonsense just because I’m imitating you, but I already know how you feel about it. Okay, Scooter, let me take over for you. Let me do your podcasts for you. I’ll handle the rest. Thank you for coming by. This is the real Bernie the butterfly here. Okay, so, Moritz…Scooter didn't want to say anything, but this play is about nature, and…in my opinion, which I think…I am a member of Mother Nature. You familiar with her? Butterflies are one of her children, and I don't want to talk about…you got your videos there with the tier lists.

 

Where do you think Mother Nature puts butterflies? I mean, come on. I mean, also, by the way, humans, you put us pretty high up there, so…and I gotta say, this musical is not just about butterflies; it’s about Mother Nature, we’ll say, because…I mean, come on, hello humans. So, yes, this play does have young adults, and…who are children of Mother Nature. But also…I mean, I think for the…it has “adults”, quote unquote. Those are…no, not you. You're listening to me right…you're like, Bernie, I’m with you. Nature, talk back to me all day long. But, you know, and Scooter's got good intentions. But yeah, so, the adults in the play, you're the humans, right? Let’s just pretend for the sake of discussion that it’s a musical about humans and nature. It’s not; I know, I know. I’m reasonable. But for Scooter's sake I just gotta lay it out like a little bit more simplistically, 'cause he likes that. He says, Bernie, just…I do the tangents over here.

 

So, the teachers, the parents, the authority figures, they're…we’ll just say they're the authority figures, but you spell it over there H-U-M-A-N adults. Yeah, I mean, I guess if you're youthful like me over here…Scooter said I basically tried to say earlier, I’m the oldest butterfly on planet Earth, while Scooter spiritually on the inside…I'm…I mean, I more relate with Moritz Stiepel. But if you're gonna ask, Bernie, which character are you like? I say, well, come on, I mean, it’s pretty clear. I gotta be…Melchior and I is pretty similar; charismatic, intelligent, R-E-B-E-L. You know, I say we're pretty similar. Okay, but this song is not about butterflies, but it is about butterflies. If I was there, if I could time travel to a world, I’d help Moritz out and all the kids. I’d say, hey, Moritz, come over here. I’m kinda like Melchior but I’m like…I’m also a butterfly, so I have much more…I'm also an authority figure, so I’d have to sit down…here’s what I would do.

 

Now, we're gonna talk about the musical, but I want to say this is about the insides of the musical over here. I’d say, all you adults get over here. Sit on the floor, on the…no, no, no, on the hard, wet part of the floor, the adults only. Okay, Moritz, let’s talk about the song here. You come over here. You can sit by me. You could have…I've been drinking these Kirkland signature sport drinks. They're pretty good if you want one. I realize this is supposed to be, whatever, 1845 or whatever, but have one of those. It’s gonna be okay, Moritz. Now, I know you were singing about being a butterfly and how these strong feelings that these adults here have not…they've not normalized because they got…whatever, R-E-P…I don't know, Moritz, can you spell it? But it’s like R-E-P-R-E-S-S-I-O-N. So, they've gotta go on their own…don't worry, Moritz. This musical in my heart is only a prequel about Melchior, you, and Wendla. Now, you and Wendla…by the way, heads up, you're gonna be in another form.

 

But the three of you will go…in Spring Awakening 2, Nature Talks…Nature…it’ll be a different word than ‘talks back’, but the three of you will roam the countryside helping me to explain to these adults; hello. Okay, so anyway, Moritz, I get it. It’s gonna be difficult. It’s difficult being you. It is. You're not…you got…nobody’s…other than your friends who are also youth, no one’s helping you. No one is taking the time to understand what your experience is like, and no one’s valuing you for you or teaching you to value you as Moritz. So, for you, you're…now, believe it or not, this guy Scooter went through this very similar thing. He was actually a little bit younger than you. So, I think it’s a good thing we're all together here.

 

But he was forming with…now, Moritz, you're not gonna believe this, but one day you'll have more capability for understanding these things than you will right now, because even though you feel fully grown, we're always, always growing on the inside and the outside, and our ability to understand some of these things comes with growth that’s also metaphorical that takes…that happens over time. So, I’ll just tell you about Scooter. I won't even use you as an example, Moritz. Is it Moritz? Scoots get Moritz and Morrish mixed up. But it’s with a I-T-Z. Moritz. But I like Stiepel. I like saying that, by the way, over there. Anyway, so, what was I…? By the way, great job singing. Holy moly. If a butterfly…by the way, butterflies can't cry, but that’s…I cried on the inside. But so, you basically took the song, right, and you're saying, oh boy, this is confuse…it must…probably be better to be…better off being a butterfly. Trust me, we all got it.

 

We all gotta deal with this human stuff while being a summer wind, just blowing and…you don't need it. But you're talking about how no one’s taught you to be…to let the tears run down your face, really, and to let that flow through you. This is actually a good thing instead of something that’s gonna…so, you gotta let yourself experience that. So, now, the good news is that now, after this, when we make this…now, it’s strange that this was a musical about youth, and the one I’m gonna do is gonna be about…more of like action. So, you'll be in a action role and you'll be helping to explain in action terms to these adults…or you could actually…maybe one of your powers could be the power of being sad and being like, it’s okay to be sad. But I think probably we’ll do that in some sort of…I don't know. I don't know, Moritz. We’ll talk about it more. But that one day you will be able to do sadness as…then after that, by the way, now I’m back with the audience. I was talking to Moritz, Moritz.

 

That’s me doing Scooter a little bit. I know how to talk over here. But then I run into my friend Ilse, who had her own thing where her parents said, hey…this one happens…this is pre, pre. So, this happens before the musical starts. They say, why don't you practice your own independence? We're not gonna prepare you to be an independent adult, but we're gonna have you practice anyway, 'cause we're not…you seem to be objecting to our style of parenting. Now, by the way, Bernie’s softening all this for sleep, you know, but…so, she’s out trying to function in the real world. She still manages to be a pretty good friend to Moritz. But then she sings this song — holy moly, oh my goodness — about spring and summer, blue…the color blue as a feeling word, but also gets used a lot. So, it talks about the blue wind blowing through the corn and the hay, spring and summer, then they talk about autumn a little bit. Really beautiful language.

 

But she kinda sings a song that says, hey, even the wind could be sad, you know? I may be overreaching there. But you say…I would say to Ilse, hey, great job, because no one ever explained it to any of these kids. Hey, we don't know…not only do we know…not know what we're doing over here as adults, but also our behavior is making…make you…and also part of the natural course of Mother Nature’s plan. Sometimes…that’s, I guess, what I was trying to say. Thanks for summing it up. Mother Nature’s plan; sometimes we're all gonna be sad. Now, if…I would say to the adults if I was ever calm around them, don't you understand Mother Nature? Unfortunately Mother Nature does not…I mean, other than Bernie the butterfly — that’s why I’m here — she doesn't have the ability to put things into words. So, I don't know if you've ever paid attention to anything happening organically, but it’s poetic. Can you see that?

 

They'd all look at me with…kinda like Scooter looks at me with his mouth open, you know? Poetic language. What? Oh boy, these authority figure…why don't you do less…? If you could do less figuring and less authoritating, maybe we’d all be…I'm kidding over here, but I’m not, over here. So yeah, Mother Nature says, hey, it’s okay to be…it’s part of my thing. Cold…sometimes the wind’s cold; sometimes it’s warm. Sometimes the leaves are dried up and crinkly. So, more or less, hello adults. What do you think? Oh boy. So, I realize it’s…Bernie, it’s a play. Well, it’s a musical, by the way, not a play, Scooter. Okay, but she kind of…also in the first act, kind of…Ilse’s like, hey…she had to go figure out how to function as an adult, and that’s…couldn't have been easy. That’s one of the things the adults use to maintain their authority. Like, hey, good luck. Go get a job, as they say nowadays. You think all those mac and cheeses grow themselves? I say, hello.

 

So, then they talk about their friendship, and she’s kinda offering him some hope, as Mother Nature is. But with Moritz…now, the good news is, like I said, this is only a part-one stage of a multilayered story that is an eternal story, right, to where now, with Melchior, Moritz, and Wendla, they…and they’ll probably go to this town first and say, hey, by the way…but I guess by the time they get there…anyway, they’ll go there first and they’ll say, hey…oh, what was I saying, though? Oh, I said don't worry about it. But she’s trying…in this moment she’s saying, hey, I realize your parents…and it is a struggle for me as well, 'cause I still have to deal with less responsible adults that may not be authority figures, but they're not…I mean…but she says this is…you're important to me. I see that you're struggling over there. Then they sing together, which is pretty nice. I guess in a sense Moritz is kinda saying, this is what I learned, but he doesn't know it’s false.

 

Should never be frowny; maybe that’s one of the things his father told him. Moritz, don't ever frown your face. Turn a frown upside-down. Ilse’s saying, well, no, no, frowny faces come…it rains even when you don't want it to, Papa Stiepel. Okay, so, I don't know, Scooter didn't give me a lot of instruction here, but I guess I keep going. What should I talk about next? I don't know. There was something I’d like to…so, Melchior…I think this is the part, maybe. Let me double-check. But Melchior…the next thing we know is that Moritz has prepared the way for the next…our phase of the next story after this. So, Moritz is like, okay, I’m gonna go to….phase to another realm to be ready. But everybody has feelings about that because he said, well, if he was properly helped, he wouldn't…he could have just…if we had a better realm to exist in here, he wouldn't have had to transfer realms. So, Melchior here sings a song, and then everybody sings, first kind of…I mean, this is the way I would come in.

 

I don't have the same voice to be singing like that over there, but spirit-wise we're kinda similar. So, Melchior says, hey, over there, what are you doing? What are you even doing to…? Now, he sings it nicely because in this story the adults can't handle…can you imagine what would happen if I showed up there? They would have outlawed butterflies, to start, and then they would have said, any child seen talking to a butterfly is gonna have to, whatever, write it fifty times? I don't even know. But he says…and I like the subtleness of this. Bernie, I don't necessarily paint. I do a lot of painting in primary colors, but the subtlety of this is that Melchior…in a legitimate way, while it’s not effective because it’s only sung in somewhat of…what’s happening in the children’s minds, he’s kind of using the adult’s tactics in a real way to say, hey, by the way, Moritz’ parents, shouldn't you have some feelings about your behavior?

 

Because a lot of the time you've been trying to tell us through terms that start…that rhyme with silt but start with a G and a U or rhyme with ‘frame’, but a sh- or whatever. You sure you're not experiencing any of this but in a real way? Because Moritz was a pretty good kid. He was my bud. He’s also sad because he said…he doesn't…he’s just…also, by the way, as smart as Melchior is, he’s still a young adult as well. So, he’s also saying, oh boy, maybe you should actually experience some of those feelings as authority figures, 'cause you really missed out on Moritz. Also, I like the idea of some of the language or themes, subtle themes, by the way. Yearning is repeated here. Okay, so, then of course…now, this is a tale as old as time. So, Melchior sings his song. Now, the adults don't really hear it. Instead they hear, oh boy, it’s time…no one ever taught us when you're pointing a finger at somebody, three fingers are pointed back at you.

 

So, we're gonna do…as authority figures we need to start doing some finger-pointing. The wonderful thing about this musical, and I guess that it is a little bit rebellious like Bernie, is that even after saying, okay, we're gonna really miss Moritz and we're gonna experience being sad because he couldn't experience being sad, then we get this upbeat, fun number that’s about some serious things. This is…I guess it is…I don't know, is this the funnest peak number to the show? I guess I would say it’s such a interesting use of…I would even say…I mean, while the…you gotta be careful with this word, of versing sub. I think it is, in a sense, because you're laughing, the children are dancing. But also in a sense, it’s like you're getting to experience things again as a…in that adolescent Spring Awakening phase. But first the adults say, okay, so, here’s what we're gonna do. Here's our plan. Let’s…Moritz’ father said, this isn’t my fault, of course. Whose fault is it? I think it’s one of his friends’.

 

Then the teachers and the other authority figures said, of course it’s not an adult’s fault. It’s gotta be this Melchior Gabor. So, let’s see if he’ll…but he’s…let just see what this Melchior Gabor was up to, because he seems like he’s rocking the boat, and we can't have any rocking of the boat over here. Also, I feel like maybe…and maybe this is just Bernie the butterfly projecting on humans; they're like, maybe we could use this as our…to our advantage, this opportunity, instead of seeing it for what it is and then say, you know, this Melchior, sooner or later he’s gonna rock the boat anyway. So, a couple of adults say, hey, by the way, we know you were kind of explaining the butterfly, the birds, and the bees to your friends because no one else was, by the way. That’s…you're not authorized to do so, and that goes…whatever. Are you…do you accept that fact? He says, huh. Then more or less they say, by the way, are you sure…did you explain the birds, the butterflies, and the bees to Moritz or not?

 

Just a great song. You should go discover it for yourself. It puts a smile on my face just thinking about it and how it builds, but even how the initial is delivered. But it’s also…I think the end of the line in some sense…and again, this is…has to be a tale as old as time because Melchior realizes in a sense, huh, I’m in a world of value…different…I've been placed in a world where the authority figures have a value system that is different from mine, but I am not in a position of authority. Butterflies find themselves in that all the time. By the way, I think I’ve done a episode…you think every human…this was the one thing I presented maybe on my first or second time on the show over here; oh, it must be so nice to be in a chrysalis. Oh, us humans wish…no, no, being in a chrysalis has plenty of downsides, and I think that’s where these kids are. They say, what, you jealous of us? Why don't you look at us like a precious butterfly in a chrysalis instead of being like, oh, I’m…whatever.

 

But also acknowledge, hey, being in a chrysalis ain’t easy. Also, you're wondering, what, did I just hear a bird over there? If we had authority figures for chrysalises, I’d say, yeah, could you just sit gently by my chrysalis? Sing me a song, tell me…Scooter, by the way, maybe you should change your podcast, The Chrysalis Cast, and you could just sit…but you'd have to sit there. You say, okay, don't worry, I’m keeping…Bernie, I’m keeping an eye on you over here. I know it’s not easy being a chrysalis, everything that’s going on in there. Once you were this and now you're becoming this. No one laid out the road map for you. I’m just telling you from a butterfly’s experience. I go…I'm one thing, then I’m changing into another thing. Nobody told me about it. So, that would have been nice. But Mother Nature says, don't worry, Bernie. I guess I’m getting reality and fiction mixed up. But so, I wouldn't mind it if a human was sitting by somebody and say, well, don't worry, Bernie, I’m gonna be by your chrysalis.

 

Even though it’s hard in there, I’m telling you I know it’s hard in there, but it’s gonna be okay, 'cause I’m sitting here by you. Maybe that’s what a good authority figure would do. You say, well, I can explain some of this to you, Bernie, but I can't ever tell you what it’s like being in a chrysalis. I could just…I could kinda prepare you for it and say, hey, it’s not gonna be easy, and then I’ll be here with you, but I can't actually…it’s kinda one of those things you gotta go through, too. But I’ll be here to tell you it’s okay and to tell you, hey, going through a chrysalis ain’t your fault, Bernie or anybody else. It’s just Mother Nature. Mother Nature, when they say no ill intent, she’s got no ill intent, that at least I know about over here. Anyway, so, what was I saying? This is where…I guess this is kinda like the heroic moment, but it’s a moment of acceptance. But he’s…Melchior comes to the acceptance that…he’s like, okay, I’m live…I'm being evaluated based on a system I have not bought into.

 

I guess the heroic moment is acknowledging, okay, I accept it. Yeah, I taught him about the birds, the butterflies, and the bees, which…oh, and also, they do a lot of Scooter; they go blah, blah, blah, which I thought was funny, that kind of…instead of doing a sleep podcast, they're doing what the adults kinda talked to him about. So, in summary, Melchior says, huh, I guess I’ll accept the consequences of being a rebel. That’s what rebels do, anyway. Okay, then we have a little aside which is a loving moment, but also where I guess in a sense what’s lacking from the authority figures the peers are providing for one another. So, one of the peers…and I don't want to ruin it for yous, but says, well, I have a little bit more experience in this realm and a little bit more confidence in this realm. So, let me bring you into this realm of…let’s just follow Mother Nature’s course and see together…let’s enjoy a little bit of Mother Nature’s course.

 

But of saying, hey, it’s okay to be a little bit…let me lead you in gently to this…I mean through song. Then the other peer is saying, oh wow, thank you for leading me into this nice realm. This is like warm spring sunshine. This…again, I don't want to take the metaphors from the show, because there’s some funny ones in there. Also, there’s this other subtle thing that’s reprised, I believe, about…that this nature stuff, much like the chrysalis…some will talk about that that it’s like, hey, that has…that imprints on you, that I guess this all-or-nothing world of the adults doesn't have some subtlety. But also when you're a child you say, well, if this…I’d prefer the all side versus the nothing side. But if you don't take the…you can't take…you say, well, sometimes the rain’s gonna be really cold and you're gonna be outside and be cold. Or like in the previous scene, you say, well, sometimes those connections, they don't last forever. The pitter-patter of the heart can change.

 

Then you say, well, I don't know if my heart pitter-patters for you anymore. Then someone will be…so that you could live in a gray area, which I know is not easy for your humans, where we in nature, we gotta live in there all day long. That’s pretty much the experience of these…young adulthood, if you don't remember over there, is that it has these all-or-nothings. At least, that’s how it feels, right? So, then having a authority system that’s also all-or-nothing ain’t gonna help nobody, 'cause no one…if you're a butterfly, by the way, you could only leave the chrysalis when it’s the right time. But if you get it in your head…that doesn't work. I already did a episode about it. But you say, I don't think…they don't ask us…oh, to be a beautiful butterfly…tell me what happens again. Oh no, I’d prefer…oh, well, you gotta go through this, by the way, Bernie. Why? I guess I’d prefer not to be a butterfly. That’s my doing Scooter. Well, that’s the process, Bernie. I’m sorry.

 

Again, you say, hey, just be with me here and acknowledge that it’s not easy. Maybe even acknowledge you don't know what you're doing. That’s what I…that is one of the things I like about Scooter. He probably said, I don't know nothing about chrysalises or butterflies, but I’ll sit here with you and keep you company. Now, that’s not what any of the youth…well, I guess the youth are kinda saying that. Oh boy, I just looked at the time over there. Scooter just told me about the time. So, again, I guess I’ll say I highly recommend seeing…listening to this cast recording. But do yourself a favor; wherever you are in the world over there, look up your youth performances, your community theatre performances. Scooter's talked about enough of these musicals. Go see it twice, by the way. Why don't you do yourself a favor; look up maybe Spring Awakening playing over there somewhere, maybe something else.

 

Maybe listen to the cast album a couple times, then you see the show, then you see it again or you go see the show once, you listen to the cast album two or three times, then you see the show again, or go see it on Broadway or a touring show. If you're in a position you could see that twice, but then you could see it again through the eyes of members of your community, youth, the young adults in your community, younger…even younger adults in your community in a different form, depending on the musical, and then you say, oh, wait a second, this is kinda the same thing Bernie was talking about over here. This is a gray…this is how we get in the gray area, nice songs…but again, speaking of someone that’s much like Melchior Gabor…by the way, you could call me that. Bernie the butterfly…also…I mean, don't worry. There’s gonna be spring…nature comes back; boom. Spring Awakening…Spring Awoken. I guess you could put summer in there.

 

It’s gonna be…oh, that would be in the poster there. Scooter actually is useful. He said, put it on the poster. Yeah, this summer’s gonna be a hot one because spring awoken. Nature blanks back. But yeah, we could even have on the poster. It’s like where…so, you got everybody from the show there. But I was just thinking that Moritz could say, you'll do sadness or whatever over there. So anyway, that’s where we’ll come back. I guess…they haven't cast a butterfly playing a human in a movie before, but I’d be…also, I don't sing. So, I don't know if it would be a musical anyway, but it would have…you could play the…I mean, we don't have the rights to any of this, but, yeah, I’d be Moritz. I’m sorry, 'cause Scooter gets in my ear, you know? Scooter will not be in the movie 'cause he’s an authority figure. But yeah, I’ll be Melchior Gabor, and then it’ll kinda be like that movie about crows, because then we’ll have two crows in a sense, by the way. I don't think either one is best represented by a crow.

 

Wendla and Moritz, along with Melchior, who’s grounded in earthly reality…and yeah, they’ll go to these towns; they’ll say, oh, by the way…oh, what were you talking about there from this position of authority? Huh, interesting. Moritz, Wendla, do you have anything to say about this? But I think they could do it in a fun way, like all the…there’s a movie about the kids running around real fast. I don't remember what the…where the kids start singing and dancing. So anyway, it’s more about the…let’s just be together. How about that? How about that? Nature, Mother Nature…'cause I know authority figures listen to the show. I’m not…I want us all to practice sitting together. Just imagine you're sitting next to a…every person you're next to is really in a chrysalis. That’s the truth. I mean, it really is. So, just sit next to them and be like, huh, it must not be easy.

 

I don't know what it’s like being in that chrysalis over there 'cause I don't…I'm not a moth, you know, and I’m not every specific flavor of butterfly, and I’m not Moritz Stiepel or Wendla Bergmann or the kids in the play. I think that was the most powerful message over there that Scooter and I both took away, because we did get to go to a talk back with the performers. While we do have a personal connection to one of the performers…so we’re like…we're a little bit…but they said, more than one performer…and we were gonna ask this question; like, hey, what’s your takeaway or what’s your…what have you been awoken to? But they answered it already. Or, how has this play changed being in it?

 

But the performers, almost every one of them talked about the connect between the cast and the importance of working as an ensemble and working with the entire…everyone involved in the production, and that that kinda seemed…the takeaway was that intimacy of that, and that’s a reflection on everybody involved, including the…I mean, artistic authority figures are a little bit different, you know? But there has to be someone in charge, you know. But if they're in that role of like sitting in friendship next to a chrysalis and saying, hey, I don't know what it’s like in that chrysalis; maybe I could think about what it was like when I was in mine and what they're telling me it’s…hey, well, this isn't easy in here, 'cause they all had the different ones, you know? They say, well, I’ll just sit here next to you. Yeah, I’ll talk to you. Huh, I’ll tell you what I do know and what I don't know, but I won't…'cause I’m here just to sit by you.

 

This is…as I get more years as a butterfly, I get more accepting of authority figures and humans as well, because you're all doing…we're all here…Mother Nature…but that will be the next movie, Spring Awoken: Nature Talks Back. This summer’s gonna be warm. Bernie will be hot under the collar. I wonder if we could get also a bunch of boy bands to be in that movie, 'cause that would be nice for me to meet some of the…work with some of the boy bands that I like. I mean, and not just boy bands only, but, you know, just an idea. So anyway, that’s Bernie the butterfly. Good to be here with you in your ears. Goodnight, everybody.

 

[End of recording]

Transcription performed by LeahTranscribes

Trending Tuesday / Bernie the Butterfly

 

History of Wax

https://rhr.luxury/blogs/news/what-wax-did-we-use-before-vegetable-waxes-became-popular-exploring-historical-alternatives

https://hairshoponline.co.uk/the-fascinating-world-of-wax-from-ancient-times-to-modern-uses/

https://origin-trace.com/article/history-of-candles/

 

Spring Awakening

https://medium.com/the-awl/understudies-how-spring-awakening-changed-the-business-of-musical-theater-85396dc8bc15

https://www.onstageblog.com/columns/2015/7/3/the-timeless-themes-of-spring-awakening

https://www.vulture.com/2018/03/spring-awakening-rise-nbc-high-school-musical.html

 

Chrysalis

https://askentomologists.com/2015/01/14/what-happens-inside-a-cocoon/

https://www.labroots.com/trending/plants-and-animals/15714/here-s-happens-inside-caterpillar-s-chrysalis?srsltid=AfmBOopC2Rtn3r9fR700XMXMv7uWVDP7Kef2RNSjL0GvBN47qsl6pbRu

https://www.wildlifewatch.org.uk/what-happens-inside-chrysalis

 

Action movie one-liners

https://nofilmschool.com/100-best-action-movie-one-liners

https://nofilmschool.com/80s-action-movies-masculinity

https://www.flickeringmyth.com/the-essential-action-movies-of-the-1980s/

 

DOWN TO BUSINESS

Waxing poetically about minding my beeswax

Wax Rhapsody

I was just waterproofing my shoes

Bernie is performing a musical tonight

Bernie didn’t have a ticket to the musical

The Tony Award for first butterfly to attend a musical

I got a lifetime fictional Tony award for bringing Bernie

 

PLUGS

Sleep With Me Plus; SleepPhones; 988 Lifeline; Story Only Feed; Emily Tat Artwork; Crisis Textline

 

SPONSORS

Helix Sleep; Zocdoc; AquaTru; Talkiatry; Quince; DripDrop; Cozy Earth

 

INTRO

Thoughts that are just there

You deserve to be out there in the world living your life

I can relate to any dread you may feel

What does “abiding” mean?

A deep, abiding understanding of your experience

Together alone and alone together

At least I got that boring dude

Is the phrase “Wax Rhapsodic”?

Of course, every time I mention wax, I think of Turtle Wax

Turtle Wax is not for any shelled beings

And don’t feed Frosted Flakes to fuzzy friends

Definitely don’t give Turtle Wax to ankylosauruses

I look like a guy that’s never waxed a car

A backpack full of turtle wax

Aldi’s version is called Tort Wax

This show is probably not what you were expecting

Oh, he’s always going nowhere

sleepwithmepodcast.com/nothankyou

Elevated Background Noise

I’m just here to be your borefriend

Do I say Big Leboreski? Or Big Borebowski?

Explaining the show’s structure

Wind Down Routines

Maybe you do needlepoint, maybe you do counterpoint

Post-Peak Sleepover (PPS)

Bernie and I will talk about Spring Awakening tonight

 

STORY

This should be a fun one

This’ll be about performances of the musical Spring Awakening

At Lemoyne College

Holy cow, this cast is stacked

Reading the Wikipedia page

20 years old

Coming-of-age rock musical

By Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater

Based on Frank Wedekind’s play

Teens navigating nature and awakening

Workshopped in the 90s

Premiered in 2006

It won 8 Tonys

Revived in 2015

And then there was a reunion documentary in 2022

Bernie just showed up in the studio

Explaining Bernie the Butterfly

This would be newsworthy anywhere else but SWM

An English-fluent butterfly who loves sports drinks and boy bands

He’s a little rough around the edges

He’s like the cab driver from Scrooged

I start noticing more nuances in the show after seeing it the 2nd time

I brought Bernie back for the 2nd performance

I used to live in a house that had been turned into apartments

Bernie lived in the empty lot next door

He wanted to come on to the podcast and express his strong feelings about the song that opens Reading Rainbow

He’s very busy, constantly consuming media

He’s not like a human being at all

Sneaking a sentient butterfly into a musical is admittedly cute

So I put him in a Solo cup in my pocket

Butterflies are mentioned in the musical, too

The show doesn’t sound fun, but it is very fun

Bernie takes over

I want you to be comfortable

Nature Talks Back

In the past, I’ve spoken about boy bands

Scooter doesn’t get this show at all

Scooter wants to be like Moritz

This is Bernie’s first musical

Wendla, Moritz, and Melchior

These are all great roles, but especially Moritz

Let’s try something different first

Scooter and Bernie will pretend to be each other

Bernie (as Scooter) introduces Scooter (as Bernie)

Act 2 opens

A song from Wendla, Melchior, and the entire cast

Reinforcing the themes of the show

What if the adults are just as confused as the kids?

Thanks Bernie, I mean, Scooter

Adults are subtly exerting authority

Putting mother and father figures first

Two young adults trying to navigate their feelings

And who can say what dreams are?

Act 1 has a lot of subtle foreshadowing

If you go into the show not knowing what’s it about, you will get a good sense of what it’s about by the end of Act 1

Cease this senseless nonsense

Our Moritz’s presentation was kind of AC/DC in style

Bernie, please get to the lyrics of the butterfly song

Will Bernie be mad about these songs?

Real Bernie takes over

This play is about nature, in one way or another

Where does Mother Nature rank butterflies in a tier list?

The adults in the play are like humans

And the kids are like nature

Scooter likes it when Bernie really spells it out

Bernie relates to Melchior

If I could time travel to their world, of course I’d help these kids out

Adults, sit on the floor now

Moritz, have some Kirkland Signature sports drink

Bernie has a musical prequel in his heart

Spring Awakening 2: Nature Talks Back

It is difficult being you, Moritz, I get it

Believe it or not, Scooter went through something similar

Moritz, I like saying your last name, Stieffel

Great job singing, btw

I’m crying on the inside

Part 2 will be more of an action movie

You can have a superpower to tell people it’s okay to be sad

One day, you will be able to do sadness

Spring and summer and the color of blue

Mother Nature can’t put things into the words

Explaining  poetic language

The “Grow Up, Get a Job” POV of adults

Part 1 of a multi-layered, internal story

Then Moritz and his friend Ilse sing together

Moritz and Ilse navigate rules about frowny faces

What else can I talk about?

Moritz heads to another realm

Melchior sings a song about what could’ve been

Melchior and I share a spirit but not a voice

Can you imagine if I showed up to Moritz’s going-away ceremony?

Melchior is using the adults’ tactics on them

What rhymes with silt and starts with a G?

An upbeat, fun number about serious things

Peak Fun

An interesting use of a certain word

You experience things as an adolescent

The adults blame Melchior for Mortiz changing dimensions

No rocking the boat, Melchior!

They accuse Melchior of teaching birds and bees to his friends

This song is my favorite

Melchior realizes his value systems are different than those of the authority figures

As a butterfly, I can relate to that

Plenty of downsides to being in a chrysalis

I wish I’d known what happens in the chrysalis

I would’ve appreciated a musical about changes in the chrysalis

The Heroic Moment of Acceptance

They all say, “Blah blah blah.” Just like Scooter!

Accepting the consequences of being a rebel

The peers provide for one another what the adults do not provide

Leading their peers gently through song

The adult’s all or nothing POV leaves little room for subtlety

Nature always lives in that gray area

Navigating all-or-nothings as an adult

Oh boy, I just realized what time it is

Check out the cast recording

And go see a local youth theater performance!

Spring Awoken 2: Summer

Scooter will maybe play an authority figure

And I’ll play Melchior

It’ll be like that movie about crows

I’m not a moth or a different kind of butterfly

You are you and I’m you

We did attend a talkback after the show

The performers’ takeaways

The importance of working as an ensemble

The intimacy of being in an ensemble

Sitting in Friendship next to a Chrysalis

Imagining yourself into the chrysalis

I wonder if we could get boy bands into this movie we’re producing

Goodnight

 

SUMMARY:

Episode: 1472

Title: Spring Awakening Butterfly

Plugs: Sleep With Me Plus; SleepPhones; 988 Lifeline; Story Only Feed; Emily Tat Artwork; Crisis Textline

Sponsors: Helix Sleep; Zocdoc; AquaTru; Talkiatry; Quince; DripDrop; Cozy Earth

Notable Language:

• Abiding
• Wax Rhapsody
• Always Going Nowhere
• Elevated Background Noise
• Post-Peak Sleepover (PPS)
• Cease this senseless nonsense
• H-U-M-A-N
• R-E-B-EL
• R-E-P-R-E-S-S-I-O-N
• Peak Fun
• Chrysalis
• Heroic Moment of Acceptance
• Sitting in Friendship next to a Chrysalis

 

Notable Culture:

• Spring Awakening (musical)

• • Tony Awards
  • Turtle Wax
  • Frosted Flakes
  • Aldi
  • sleepwithmepodcast.com/nothankyou

• The Big Lebowski

• • Bernie the Butterfly
  • Lemoyne College

• Scrooged

• • David Johansen
  • Reading Rainbow
  • LeVar Burton
  • AC/DC
  • Spring Awakening 2: Nature Talks Back

• Chrysalis Cast

• Spring Awoken 2: Summer

 

Notable Talking Points:

• Thoughts that are just there
• You deserve to be out there in the world living your life
• I can relate to any dread you may feel
• What does “abiding” mean?
• A deep, abiding understanding of your experience
• Together alone and alone together
• At least I got that boring dude
• Is the phrase “Wax Rhapsodic”?
• Of course, every time I mention wax, I think of Turtle Wax
• Turtle Wax is not for any shelled beings
• And don’t feed Frosted Flakes to fuzzy friends
• Definitely don’t give Turtle Wax to ankylosauruses
• I look like a guy that’s never waxed a car
• A backpack full of turtle wax
• Aldi’s version is called Tort Wax
• This show is probably not what you were expecting
• Oh, he’s always going nowhere
• sleepwithmepodcast.com/nothankyou
• Elevated Background Noise
• I’m just here to be your borefriend
• Do I say Big Leboreski? Or Big Borebowski?
• Explaining the show’s structure
• Wind Down Routines
• Maybe you do needlepoint, maybe you do counterpoint
• Post-Peak Sleepover (PPS)
• Bernie and I will talk about Spring Awakening tonight
• This should be a fun one
• This’ll be about performances of the musical Spring Awakening
• At Lemoyne College
• Holy cow, this cast is stacked
• Reading the Wikipedia page
• 20 years old
• Coming-of-age rock musical
• By Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater
• Based on Frank Wedekind’s play
• Teens navigating nature and awakening
• Workshopped in the 90s
• Premiered in 2006
• It won 8 Tonys
• Revived in 2015
• And then there was a reunion documentary in 2022
• Bernie just showed up in the studio
• Explaining Bernie the Butterfly
• This would be newsworthy anywhere else but SWM
• An English-fluent butterfly who loves sports drinks and boy bands
• He’s a little rough around the edges
• He’s like the cab driver from Scrooged
• I start noticing more nuances in the show after seeing it the 2nd time
• I brought Bernie back for the 2nd performance
• I used to live in a house that had been turned into apartments
• Bernie lived in the empty lot next door
• He wanted to come on to the podcast and express his strong feelings about the song that opens Reading Rainbow
• He’s very busy, constantly consuming media
• He’s not like a human being at all
• Sneaking a sentient butterfly into a musical is admittedly cute
• So I put him in a Solo cup in my pocket
• Butterflies are mentioned in the musical, too
• The show doesn’t sound fun, but it is very fun
• Bernie takes over
• I want you to be comfortable
• Nature Talks Back
• In the past, I’ve spoken about boy bands
• Scooter doesn’t get this show at all
• Scooter wants to be like Moritz
• This is Bernie’s first musical
• Wendla, Moritz, and Melchior
• These are all great roles, but especially Moritz
• Let’s try something different first
• Scooter and Bernie will pretend to be each other
• Bernie (as Scooter) introduces Scooter (as Bernie)
• Act 2 opens
• A song from Wendla, Melchior, and the entire cast
• Reinforcing the themes of the show
• What if the adults are just as confused as the kids?
• Thanks Bernie, I mean, Scooter
• Adults are subtly exerting authority
• Putting mother and father figures first
• Two young adults trying to navigate their feelings
• And who can say what dreams are?
• Act 1 has a lot of subtle foreshadowing
• If you go into the show not knowing what’s it about, you will get a good sense of what it’s about by the end of Act 1
• Cease this senseless nonsense
• Our Moritz’s presentation was kind of AC/DC in style
• Bernie, please get to the lyrics of the butterfly song
• Will Bernie be mad about these songs?
• Real Bernie takes over
• This play is about nature, in one way or another
• Where does Mother Nature rank butterflies in a tier list?
• The adults in the play are like humans
• And the kids are like nature
• Scooter likes it when Bernie really spells it out
• Bernie relates to Melchior
• If I could time travel to their world, of course I’d help these kids out
• Adults, sit on the floor now
• Moritz, have some Kirkland Signature sports drink
• Bernie has a musical prequel in his heart
• Spring Awakening 2: Nature Talks Back
• It is difficult being you, Moritz, I get it
• Believe it or not, Scooter went through something similar
• Moritz, I like saying your last name, Stieffel
• Great job singing, btw
• I’m crying on the inside
• Part 2 will be more of an action movie
• You can have a superpower to tell people it’s okay to be sad
• One day, you will be able to do sadness
• Spring and summer and the color of blue
• Mother Nature can’t put things into the words
• Explaining  poetic language
• The “Grow Up, Get a Job” POV of adults
• Part 1 of a multi-layered, internal story
• Then Moritz and his friend Ilse sing together
• Moritz and Ilse navigate rules about frowny faces
• What else can I talk about?
• Moritz heads to another realm
• Melchior sings a song about what could’ve been
• Melchior and I share a spirit but not a voice
• Can you imagine if I showed up to Moritz’s going-away ceremony?
• Melchior is using the adults’ tactics on them
• What rhymes with silt and starts with a G?
• An upbeat, fun number about serious things
• Peak Fun
• An interesting use of a certain word
• You experience things as an adolescent
• The adults blame Melchior for Mortiz changing dimensions
• No rocking the boat, Melchior!
• They accuse Melchior of teaching birds and bees to his friends
• This song is my favorite
• Melchior realizes his value systems are different than those of the authority figures
• As a butterfly, I can relate to that
• Plenty of downsides to being in a chrysalis
• I wish I’d known what happens in the chrysalis
• I would’ve appreciated a musical about changes in the chrysalis
• The Heroic Moment of Acceptance
• They all say, “Blah blah blah.” Just like Scooter!
• Accepting the consequences of being a rebel
• The peers provide for one another what the adults do not provide
• Leading their peers gently through song
• The adult’s all or nothing POV leaves little room for subtlety
• Nature always lives in that gray area
• Navigating all-or-nothings as an adult
• Oh boy, I just realized what time it is
• Check out the cast recording
• And go see a local youth theater performance!
• Spring Awoken 2: Summer
• Scooter will maybe play an authority figure
• And I’ll play Melchior
• It’ll be like that movie about crows
• I’m not a moth or a different kind of butterfly
• You are you and I’m you
• We did attend a talkback after the show
• The performers’ takeaways
• The importance of working as an ensemble
• The intimacy of being in an ensemble
• Sitting in Friendship next to a Chrysalis
• Imagining yourself into the chrysalis
• I wonder if we could get boy bands into this movie we’re producing
• Goodnight