The Sound of Music

Like most people my age, I have seen the film version of The Sound of Music at least two or three times.  But I had never seen the stage show – until now!  It was refreshing in some ways to see WODS staging a ‘classic’ musical, in a time when theatres are often crammed with much more recent offerings.  Nothing wrong with that, of course, but this visit to WODS provided a very nice change, and they did it with great skill and finesse (as I have now come to expect from this talented group.)

The story of The Sound of Music, of course, follows the adventures of free-spirited Maria, who is cast out of her closeted life in an Abbey to work as a Governess to the seven children of Captain von Trapp – a man who has almost lost himself in grief following the death of his wife.  It’s not long before Maria, abetted by her love of music, has won over the children and then the Captain himself.  But their happiness is threatened by the Nazi occupation of Austria, forcing the family to attempt a daring (and successful) escape. 

As Maria, Nicola Sandy had very large, Julie Andrews shaped shoes to fill.  But, in her first show for WODS, she shows exactly why the Society had confidence in her, with a cleanly sung performance full of warmth.  As well as her love for the Von Trapp children, I thought Maria’s religious devotion was very clearly delineated.  Alongside her, Andy Gilhooly also did well as Von Trapp, effectively showing the character’s journey from distant, formal parent to loving father. 

But, as good as their performances were, it was perhaps inevitable that the Von Trapp children would steal the spotlight.  And steal it they did – every single one of them delivering performances full of poise and character.  So, allow me to blow my whistle and congratulate – deep breath – Katie Downes (Liesl), Harvey Daniel (Friedrich), Phoebe Wilson (Louisa), Redvers Bucknall (Kurt), Tilly Francis (Brigitta), Rheya Hung (Marta) and Neve Raven (Gretl) on their excellent performances. 

Good support was provided by Eddie Paisley as von Trapp’s friend Max Detweiller– a conflicted character who nevertheless provided some comic relief; Sarah Gilhooly as a suitably haughty Elsa Schrader, Maria’s romantic rival; Ethan Cook as Rolf, Liesl’s proto-Nazi boyfriend who comes good at the end; and Lynsey Beckley as Mother Abbess, whose ‘Climb Every Mountain’ was perhaps the closest that this show comes to a showstopper.  A large ensemble of nuns, partygoers and villagers enhanced the action, with a very high standard of performance being maintained throughout. 

Director Chris Holloway tried something different with the staging of this show, eschewing multiple backdrops and complicated set changes for a more stripped back approach.  The show was set entirely on a marble-effect, split level platform, which was transformed with simple changes of furniture, windows and lighting into the various locations of the story.  This allowed a good pace to be maintained and worked effectively – once I worked out what was going on and that Maria was in fact singing in the mountains and not the town square at the start of the play!  The backstage team played their part by working very efficiently to move furniture on and off stage quickly. 

As always with WODS, the play was beautifully costumed – the sheer quantity of nun’s habits on stage would give even Sister Act a run for its money! – and the many changes (including a very quick one for Max) were achieved seamlessly.  One thing that was a bit of an issue for me was the lighting.  I don’t know whether it was a limitation of the venue or a directorial decision, but for me the show was underlit, with performers sometimes lost in dark patches and scenes set in the bright of day looking more like twilight.  It’s not a big issue, but I did find it a little distracting, and surprising when everything else about the show was of such high calibre.

The story ends, of course, with the Von Trapp family’s audacious escape from the Nazi’s.  The concert scene was very well staged, powerfully evoking the bravery of singing a song such as Edelweiss whilst flanked by swastika banners.  I did wonder whether the growing Nazi menace might have been foreshadowed a little earlier in the story, and one or two dramatic moments didn’t quite have the heft they might have done – the encounter with Rolf in the abbey grounds, for example, could have had a little more impact, I thought.  But these are small points and did not detract significantly from what was a very well put together show. 

My congratulations to WODS for once again staging a show of high quality throughout.  This was of course just as expected – another mountain well climbed!  My thanks for the warm welcome, and I look forward to seeing you again soon. 

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