The Sound of Music
Information
- Date
- 26th September 2012
- Society
- Theats
- Venue
- The Lighthouse Theatre Kettering
- Type of Production
- Musical
- Director
- Sarah Reynolds
- Musical Director
- Barbara Hockey
- Choreographer
- Sarah Reynolds
It was lovely to see the " Theats " back in the Lighthouse Theatre and performing this Rogers and Hammerstein classic. " The Sound of Music " is probably one of the best known and loved of all musicals. This " Theats " production certainly lived up to all my expectations.
The musical began traditionally with the Nuns Chorus; congratulations to all the Nuns your singing throughout the show was of a very high standard. Special mention to Christine Haynes, Dawn Hall, Tracey Arnold and Trisha Lynch for their wonderful rendition of " Maria ", it was well performed and proved to be one of the high lights of the show.
Sarah Hollands was perfectly cast in the role of Maria, she gave a faultless performance, both with her singing and acting and at times it was hard to believe you were watching an amateur actor !
Captain von Trapp was played by Kevin Aitken, a solid performance, but I felt it took a while for him to relax into the role, once he did he was very endearing, particularly in the scenes with Maria, there was a natural chemistry between them which was quite heart warming.
The Von Trapp Children were delightful, well rehearsed and worked together well as a family, they clearly appear to be enjoying this experience.
Rolf played by Keith Underhill sang beautifully and worked well with Sophie Traunter who played Liesl.
The real " show stopper " was when Christine Haynes in the role of The Mother Abbess sang " Climb ev'ry Mountain " this was wonderfully moving and her delivery was very spiritually uplifting. Well done !
There were good performances too from the actors in the smaller roles, it would be unfair to mention any individually as they all contributed to what was an excellent company.
The entire production team should be very proud of what they have achieved with " The Sound of Music ". The Direction. Musical Direction and the Choreography was all of a high standard.
The Orchestra was very good and ably conducted by the MD.
The costumes, make up, props, lighting and sound all played their part in enhancing the show.
I thought the sets were fabulous and gave a professional feel to this production. My only criticism is that there were some slow scene changes that should be addressed so the continuity is maintained throughout.
The last scene when the Von Trapps go up into the mountains was wonderful, the end picture was beautiful; and the standing ovation the company received was well deserved .
Thank you to the " Theats " for giving us the audience a thoroughly enjoyable evening, good luck for the rest of the run.
And a big thanks for the hospitality shown to my guest and myself.
Caroline Jervis
NODA District 7 Representative.
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