#26
Posted: 9/15/20 at 4:19pm
Revival with Laura Osnes( Maria) Cheyenne Jackson (captain ), Kelly O’Hara (mother superior) and Brian Stokes Mitchell (Max)
The Sound of Music — Page 2
#27
Posted: 9/15/20 at 4:59pm
The Sound of Music, besides being arguably the most famous musical ever written, is a well-constructed piece of integrated musical theatre, and it confronts some darker issues, folding all these elements together seamlessly. On the other hand, I can also see how it might be viewed as the endpoint of R&H's loss of experimentality. I don't know what Sondheim has said about Sound of Music, but I believe he's stated his feelings that Allegro's failure scared them away from pushing the envelope too much.
#28
Posted: 9/15/20 at 5:29pm
Yeah, I think that's what he meant. I remember he mentioned it in the Dramatists Guild conversation with Adam Guettel, up on YouTube now. I still think it's a little harsh, he didn't seem to be a fan at all.
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#29
Posted: 9/16/20 at 1:19am
Whatever one thinks about whether this was a fitting end for R&H, I will say it gave us "Edelweiss" which I do believe is a fitting end for Oscar Hammerstein.
#30
Posted: 9/16/20 at 3:11am
The bottom line is that the work has that "it" factor. Impossible to describe. The book for the stage show is really quite terrible, though the organization of plot (also by Lindsay and Crouse) is exceptionally good. While some people love the two songs for Max and Elsa, and they are fun, they don't fit the characters (for instance, neither Max nor Elsa are really selfish, so the lyrics to No Way to Stop It don't fit them; similarly, Max seems to be fine with Elsa and Georg marrying, but he pointlessly needles her with How Can Love Survive). Yet, the show, to put it mildly, works.
And the superior movie really, really, really works. You can mount any sort of intellectual argument against it, but it gets to most everyone.
Everything about it just works. Someone started a thread about what musical we'd most like to see survive all others, but it may be that the musical that will survive all others is this one.
Updated On: 9/16/20 at 03:11 AM
#31
Posted: 9/16/20 at 9:28am
I saw the London Palladium production here in Australia a few years ago and was actually amazed by how much I loved it and actually went back again a few weeks later and still enjoyed it just as much. I think casting the right Maria with that “it factor” is key (Amy Lehpamer was just glorious!). The staging, including the hills, worked well too from my memory. I commented to someone the other day that when theatre reopens I expect we will see a period of “safe” shows being revived that will guarantee bums on seats; perhaps this could be one for Broadway?
#32
Posted: 9/19/20 at 2:13am
I remember reading a review of the Sound of Music revival, in the Times, I think, after Rebecca Luker had left the show and been replaced by her understudy. The critic pretty plainly stated that the show was better with the younger woman in the role. Being soft, I felt sorry for Rebecca having to read that. But youth will be served.
When Luker left the show, Benanti had to audition for Chamberlain himself.
“I was so nervous,” she recalls. “I was doing a reading at City Center, so the producers sent a car to pick me up. But it was raining and we were stuck in traffic. I jumped out and ran to the theater. When I got there, I was a big old mess – soaking wet and crying because I was late. But Richard was so sweet. He had a calming effect on me. We read a scene together and I sang for him.”
Chamberlain was impressed, and Benanti found herself with a leading role in a $7 million Broadway musical.
#33
Posted: 9/23/20 at 8:33pm
I think a big reason this hasn't seen many revivals on stage is because it is so often produced regionally. It isn't difficult to drive less than 50 miles to find a production for less than $50 a ticket. If i can do that, do I really feel like I need to cough up Broadway prices to see it? It would have to be made into an event in order do drum up enough interest to make it worth a big revival.
With that being said, I prefer the book for the stage version over the screenplay for the film. I prefer An Ordinary Couple over Something Good. I like that the political conflict is brought to the forefront through Captain Von Trapp's relationship with Elsa. I'm not saying that I don't enjoy the movie, I just think that the stage version has an edge over the movie.
With that being said, I prefer the book for the stage version over the screenplay for the film. I prefer An Ordinary Couple over Something Good. I like that the political conflict is brought to the forefront through Captain Von Trapp's relationship with Elsa. I'm not saying that I don't enjoy the movie, I just think that the stage version has an edge over the movie.
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