The Sound of Music

The first thing that struck me about James Player’s production was what good choices he had made in casting this show, all of the characters fitted together well. Good use was made of the different levels in the Captain’s home and the stairs to the auditorium. I liked the way the concert happened in front of the stage curtain and the menacing stillness of the Nazis among the audience was very effective. It also worked having German accents for ‘the others’ who were not family and friends.

James and Jacqui’s choreography was very good for the children’s songs and in the ball scene, especially the traditional Austrian Dance. It was a little too repetitive in some of the principal numbers.

The band made a great sound under the baton of Karen Chinery and Catherine Dennison had obviously worked hard with her part of the production.

I saw Ella Rowsell as Maria and she gave an excellent performance. Her warm singing voice suited the part and her portrayal had just the right of amount of naivety, she was completely believable. Mark Bolton’s Captain Von Trapp was an uptight and grieving man who thawed and became vulnerable as he recognised his love for Maria. The Mother Abbess, Kirsty Beckett, showed a kind and caring side and her rendition of ‘Climb Every Mountain’ was an emotional highlight.

Megan Mayes as Baroness Schraeder was as elegant as she was scheming and had a lovely soprano voice. Max Detweiler played by Austin Weston, was great with the children and I enjoyed both of the trios he was in. I saw Team Melody on the Friday night, led by Tilly Harriss as a charming and endearing Liesl. The children were 100% engaged in the performance, confident in their moves and songs and enjoying every moment.

The music written for the Nuns is particularly difficult and I was pleased to hear every part in the harmonies, not an easy thing to do when a lot of it is a capella.

I liked the view of the mountains through the villa windows and using the house staff to change furniture and props was a good idea. I would have liked to have seen more opulence in the home of a wealthy man but understand that budgets are tight.

The ladies were well dressed in appropriate styles for the time but the principal men all had modern trousers on that were the wrong shape, they should have been looser on their legs. A couple of other small tweaks would have made the costumes even better, for example Maria should have had her hair up and would have worn a hat when she returned from her honeymoon.

I was pleased to see true period champagne glasses and the microphone at the concert but the plastic laundry basket was a jarring note.

The lighting was good, the thunder and lightning was particularly effective but a couple of mic cues were missed. When all of the Nuns or the children sang, some of the entrances sounded too harsh, not too loud but it wasn’t a pleasant sound.

I am embarrassed to say that I didn’t check the opening time for this performance and so missed the first few scenes, however what I did see was polished and entertaining. I felt very welcomed and thank you for being so kind about me being late. The almost sold out audience had a very enjoyable evening, as did my guest and I, well done Centre Stage.

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