BWW Previews: THE SOUND OF MUSIC at The Playhouse
By: Greer Firestone May. 02, 2019
Who has not seen SOUND OF MUSIC whether on stage or the classic movie and not been enraptured by its story and songs?
SOM opened on Broadway in 1959 starring Mary Martin, winning 5 Tony's. In 1965, the film premiered with Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer, two names not well known at the time. Shirley Jones and Grace Kelly were initially considered as were Bing Crosby, Yul Brenner, Sean Connery and Richard Burton.
Some of the child-actors interviewed or tested, who were not selected, included Mia Farrow, Patty Duke, Shelley Fabares, Kurt Russell and, if you can get your mind around this...The Osmonds.
It was the last show that Rodgers and Hammerstein wrote, the latter dying soon after its creation.
In 1998 the American Film Institute (AFI) listed it as the fourth greatest movie musical. In 2014 financial calculations concluded that adjusted for inflation, the film earned about $2.366 billion at 2014 prices-the fifth highest-grossing film of all time
Original SOUND OF MUSIC tour Director, 3-time Tony winner Jack O'Brien, has promised a few new twists in the show coming to The Playhouse May 9-12. The entire Creative Crew (choreo, sound, light, set design and music director are all Tony Award winners.
I had the opportunity to chat with Kate Turner who plays Elsa Schraeder. After graduating from Penn State with a Musical Theatre major, Turner has played lead roles in various musicals in regional theatre. Several years ago, I emceed Sound of Music Singalongs. The movie was projected on the theatre screen and the song lyrics scrolled below. Guests were invited to come dressed as characters in the movie and enter the costume contest. I recall one guy won the award by wearing "brown paper packages tied up in strings".
I kidded Turner that every time Elsa Schraeder appeared on screen at the Singalongs the audience booed. She laughed but said her interpretation in the stage show we will see is a bit warmer and fuzzier, "Elsa loves the children".
The songs are part of America's musical theatre pantheon: "The Sound of Music", "Do Re Mi", "The Lonely Goatherd", "Climb Every Mountain", "My Favorite Things", "Edelweiss", "So Long Farewell", to name a few.
The Playhouse May 9 - 12 302.800.0200 / 800.37.GRAND
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