Track eight of Spring Awakening's original broadway soundtrack. Lilli Cooper & Lauren Pritchard sing The Dark I Know Well. No copyright infringement intended. Image Credit: sarahgrace24601 @ LiveJournal
(Not so) fun fact- in the Deaf West production, during the second “you say all you want is just a kiss goodnight”, Ernst breaks away from the boys and starts signing with the girls. Originally, The Dark I Know Well was supposed to be a song for Ernst and Thea, while still keeping the same connotations, but it was changed to Ilse and Martha. So when Ernst breaks away from the boys to sing with the girls in the revival, it heavily implies he is a victim of sexual abuse as well
I agree. I think the claustrophobic feeling comes from, obviously the subject matter, but also long and intensely the song with out taking a breath at some parts.
Of course the lyric "Child the Lord won´t mind" is terrifying. But for me the most haunting is the part they sing "its just you and me". That felling of total and utter loneliness and helplessness in the midst of one the most horrific things that can happen to a person... is gut wrenching
*I haven't seen anybody say this yet, and I'm sure everyone already got this but I'm new here. You know how she sings, "me and my beauty" she's referencing her and body as two different things because she feels like her body isn't hers anymore at this point*
This is the most underrated song in the whole show, and it's shame bc I think it's one of the best. It's the first song I really loved from this musical.
Funny? I never really thought of this musical as funny. I always thought of it as being quite serious, and actually quite tragic what with its ending and all. But please take this comment in the right spirit @Rogue257. I have no malicious intent whatsoever, just sharing my perspective which is different from yours
Rogue257 it’s much darker then you think; I’m German and we performed the original play and in the original material the sex Melchior and Wendla have is without wendlas consent. So he basically raped wendla and then she died because of the abortion. We performed this for school lol
@@the_autistic_advocate True, but this is the eighth song in the musical, and none of the serious moments in the second act (especially the ending) have happened yet. I agree that this muscial isn't funny in the sense that it isn't a comedy, but prior to this song, there are many lighthearted, funny moments, particularly in My Junk and The B*tch of Living. I think that The Dark I Know Well is the turning point,where the more serious themes start to show through.
I saw a production of SA at my college, and when they did this song, the two people singing had these expressions of grief and anger and it was just chilling. At the very end they both held hands and walked to the back of the stage as the lights faded out, till there was just one spotlight on them, and right before it went out, they both turned their heads to look back at the audience for a brief second, and honest to God, I got shivers. They were incredible
Michelle Siegel facts... I was doing some theater things at school & some of my older high school friends sang this & I remember all of the lyrics even though I didn’t know it was from Spring Awakening until I saw the show.
Originally I was very afraid of listening to this song due to my own sexual trauma, but now it's actually helping me cope. I'm singing it at a small choir concert in my town later this year
I saw this live a couple weeks ago at my highschool theatre and when the girl who played martha sang the words "Its just you me. Child you're a beauty" I lost it
i get shivers when i hear this my childrens theater just did this i wasnt in it, but i saw it and it was even worse to see my friend singing this and showing her bruises
if u performed this at penn state in 2014 know that i will never forget it. the most powerful performance of the whole play no doubt. i remember you told my theater 100 class that this was an issue that had affected your family personally. i cant imagine the strength it mustve taken to practice and perform this so many times. know that this broadway recording cannot compare to what i saw in the theater that night.
"The lord won't mind" gets me every time and please if you or someone you know is in a situation like this tell someone you trust and call protection services stay safe xx💕
love this song SO much! such a haunting song. its funny, i first watched this musical just to see Lea Michele and Jonathan Groff, but the one song neither of them sing ends up being my favorite song.
I performed in the band for a production of this musical in Manchester (UK) a couple of years ago, and I still listen to the music from it as often as possible. Absolutely loved being a part of it and the songs still affect me even now.
Yeah me too. I saw a production of it that my college did last night. It was so heartwrenching and I had to step out afterwards to pull myself together in the bathroom. I didn't wanna be crying that hard in front of all of my friends :(
Omg, I'm so sorry you had to go through this. I hope everything is better now. Can't even imagine what it is like, but I can tell that you have to be very strong people and I admire that
This is more relatable to me than anything else ever written. I always tear up listening to this. It's just so *honest* about the topic in a way you never see in fiction.
Imagine releasing this at 2006 when sexual topics and issues of domestic and child abuse aren't as prevalent as they are now. THE IMPACT. THIS HAD BROUGHT THE WORLD. I miss SA
I have never listened to this soundtrack before and I listened to this song once and I’m crying. Musicals have made me cry before but never have I cried from listening to just one song out of context. It truly shows the haunting power of this song
My cousin played Martha for the Brazilian version of Spring awakening and omg even if she has never been through this, see her playing this character just broke my heart, I couldn't stop crying
Holy shit.. listening to this the first time is mindblowing. Wanting “just a kiss” is what my abuser said to me. It hurts so much to listen to listen to, yet it’s so beautiful in melody.
[MARTHA] There is a part I can't tell About the dark I know well You say, "Time for bed now, child" Mom just smiles that smile Just like she never saw me Just like she never saw me So, I leave, wantin' just to hide Knowin' deep inside You are comin' to me You are comin' to me You say all you want is just a kiss good night Then you hold me and you whisper, "Child, the Lord won't mind It's just you and me Child, you're a beauty God, it's good, the lovin'-ain't it good tonight? You ain't seen nothin' yet, gonna treat you right It's just you and me Child, you're a beauty" [ILSE] I don't scream, though I know it's wrong I just play along I lie there and breathe Lie there and breathe I wanna be strong I want the world to find out That you're dreamin' on me Me and my "beauty" [MARTHA & ILSE] Me and my "beauty" You say all you want is just a kiss good night Then you hold me and you whisper, "Child, the Lord won't mind It's just you and me Child, you're a beauty God, it's good, the lovin'-ain't it good tonight? You ain't seen nothin' yet, gonna teach you right It's just you and me Child, you're a beauty" There is a part I can't tell About the dark I know well... There is a part I can't tell About the dark I know well... There is a part I can't tell About the dark I know well... There is a part I can't tell About the dark I know well...
I'm reading a manga called A Cruel God Reigns, and it's about a teenage boy caught in a sexually abusive relationship with his stepfather after he marries the boy's mentally fragile mother. It's...disturbing to say the least, and I couldn't help but hear this song while I was reading it.
TheRainSnake Oh, A Cruel God Reigns is a very good story. Yes it does deal with a very difficult subject matter, and it can be hard to read at times, but it's worth it. I don't read a lot of manga, but it's a great one. I highly recommend it, but be forewarned.
harrietamidala1691 That sounds cool then. I've read/watched some disturbing stuff, but I only like it if it's artistically done. Anyway, I'll put it on my list :)
because ernst was an altar boy, and we all know what that means. in the deaf west version he runs from the boys to join the girls at the end of the song, signifying that he suffered the sane abuse as the girls.
+Poppy Larkspur It isn't a Hamilton pun though. This comment was made 5 years ago, and has nothing to do with Hamilton. Using a word that just happens to be the title of a song doesn't necessarily mean that it's a pun. Don't make everything about Hamilton, it gets annoying.
im not into musicals, but my girlfriend got the role of ilse recently to i came to this video. their part is absolutely beautiful and gives me the chills. i cant wait to watch the performance!
There's a part I can't tell About the dark I know well You say, "Time for bed now, child" Mom just smiles that smile Just like she never saw me Just like she never saw me So I leave wantin' just to hide Knowin' deep inside You are comin' to me You are comin' to me You say all you want is just to kiss goodnight Then you hold me and you whisper, "Child the Lord won't mind" "It's just you and me" "Child you're a beauty" "God, it's good to lovin', ain't it good tonight" "You ain't seen nothin' yet, gonna treat you right" "It's just you and me" "Child you're a beauty" I don't scream though I know it's wrong I just play along I lie there and breathe Lie there and breathe I wanna be strong I want the world to find out That you're dreamin' on me Me and my beauty Me and my beauty You say all you want is just to kiss goodnight Then you hold me and you whisper, "Child the Lord won't mind" "It's just you and me" "Child you're a beauty" "God, it's good to lovin', ain't it good tonight" "You ain't seen nothin' yet, gonna treat you right" "It's just you and me" "Child you're a beauty" There's a part I can't tell 'Bout the dark I know well There's a part I can't tell About the dark I know well There's a part I can't tell 'Bout the dark I know well There's a part I can't tell About the dark I know well
ZipZapZop Martha, the first girl, is singing about how her father sexually abuses her whilst her mother doesn’t stop him. The second girl, Ilse, went though the same thing and comes in to support Martha. “The Dark I Know Well” is the sexual abuse
MARTHA There is a part I can’t tell About the dark I know well You say, ‘Time for bed now child,? Mom just smiles that smile Just like she never saw me Just like she never saw me So, I leave, wanting to hide Knowing deep inside You are coming to me You are coming to me You say all you want is just a kiss goodnight And then you hold me and you whisper, Child, the Lord won’t mind. It’s just you and me. Child, you’re a beauty. God, it’s good the lovin’ ain’t it good tonight? You ain’t seen nothing yet gonna treat you right. It’s just you and me Child you’re a beauty. ILSE I don’t scream, though I know it’s wrong I just play along I lie there and breathe Lie there and breathe I wanna be strong I want the world to find out That you’re dreamin’ on me Me and my ‘beauty’ Me and my ‘beauty’ BOTH You say all you want is just a kiss goodnight And then you hold me and you whisper, Child, the Lord won’t mind. It’s just you and me. Child, you’re a beauty. God, it’s good the lovin’ ain’t it good tonight? You ain’t seen nothing yet gonna treat you right. It’s just you and me Child you’re a beauty. There is a part I can’t tell About the dark I know well There is a part I can’t tell About the dark I know well There is a part I can’t tell About the dark I know well There is a part I can’t tell About the dark I know well Last Update: December, 21st 2013
Spring Awakening is by far my favourite musical and this is the song that introduced me to it! I recently uploaded an unofficial music video for this song with my own singing, please please check it out if you have the chance! I'd love to know and hear the thoughts/feedback of fellow S/A fans 💞 ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-xbjFEeOXA9Y.html (PS - this musical owns my soul)
There is a part I can't tell About the dark I know well You say, "Time for bed now, child" Mom just smiles that smile Just like she never saw me Just like she never saw me So, I leave, wantin' just to hide Knowin' deep inside You are comin' to me You are comin' to me You say all you want Is just a kiss goodnight Then you hold me And you whisper "Child, the Lord won't mind It's just you and me Child, you're a beauty" "God, it's good, the lovin' Ain't it good tonight? You ain't seen nothin' yet Gonna treat you right It's just you and me Child, you're a beauty" I don't scream Though I know it's wrong I just play along I lie there and breathe Lie there and breathe I wanna be strong I want the world to find out That you're dreamin' on me Me and my "beauty" Me and my "beauty" You say all you want Is just a kiss goodnight Then you hold me And you whisper "Child, the Lord won't mind It's just you and me Child, you're a beauty" "God, it's good the lovin' Ain't it good tonight? You ain't seen nothin' yet Gonna teach you right It's just you and me Child you're a beauty" There is a part I can't tell About the dark I know well There is a part I can't tell About the dark I know well There is a part I can't tell About the dark I know well There is a part I can't tell About the dark I know well
I was just wondering, from a directing point of view, what the impact would be if you actually included the abusers in this scene, appearing vocally and physically and certain moments of the song, or having the abusers sing this to the victims?
Am I a tenor if I can sing this song in this key comfortably, none of the other boys in college could sing this song and they call themselves tenors, yet I get called baritone and I can sing this better than they can. Although I can go fairly low I’m always able to sing higher every boy I’ve meant in my education who claims to be higher than me Other examples include Michael in the bathroom - Be more chill All that’s known - Spring Awakening freeze your brain - Heathers meant to be yours - Heathers Seventeen - Heathers I’m alive - Next to Normal And then there were none - Spring Awakening
Martha (the first girl to sing) is singing about how her father sexually abuses her while her mother ignores it. Ilse, the second girl, experienced the same thing and she comes in to support Martha. The "Dark I Know Well" is the abuse.
Lightning Larry Luciano interestingly enough the official licensing page for the show says they’re sisters too... but then I haven’t seen any reference to that in either the musical or the play, and they have completely different surnames which seems to contradict that interpretation?? (At first I thought that since Ilse’s surname literally means ‘new man’ it could be an alias she used to reinvent herself or something... but then MTI’s character breakdowns refer to her father as Herr Neumann too which would imply that it’s actually her real name)
The saddest part is that the actress playing Ilse actually was sexually abused by a family member from age 4-8. My heart hurts for her singing this for years.
