Since it opened on Broadway in 1959, The Sound of Music has become arguably the most famous musical in the world. Through the iconic 1965 film adaptation with Julie Andrews, many successful revivals on Broadway and in the West-End (including the 1981 revival with Petula Clark) and the recent TV search to find the next Maria, The Sound of Music has permanently been part of Western popular culture for the last half-century. It was this search for Maria that found the star of this new production, which opened at the London Palladium in 2006, Connie Fisher. Andrew Lloyd-Webber’s new production has been, since last year, on tour, with Ms. Fisher still in the part.
Connie Fisher & The Children
Great things were expected of this production and this star and I saw it when it was over a year into its multi-million pound tour of the biggest venues of the UK. Multi-million pound? It must be said that this production looked anything but from the start. From the opening image of Connie Fisher on a polystyrene-looking mountain, I wasn’t exactly hooked. I was, instead, sat there thinking that I’d bought an over-priced ticket to a school production.
Soon though, everything changed. We were introduced to a fabulous motion sequence during I Have Confidence which showed Maria’s journey from the abbey to the fabulous, imposing Von Trapp mansion. Other set highlights included the Swastika-filled concert hall.
The other let-down of the initial scene was Connie Fisher’s singing. Shocking, I know, considering Fisher has been hailed as the second coming of Julie Andrews. But that was exactly the problem. Why the producers felt the need to so faithfully re-create Andrews’ iconic look for Fisher is quite beyond me. However, Fisher was so drowned out in the title song that the audience had no choice but to look at the set.
Like the set though, Fisher’s singing suddenly improved as the show went on, resulting in fantastic renditions of songs such as The Lonely Goatherd and My Favourite Things. Her fellow leading artists were also highlights, including fabulous portrayals of Captain Von Trapp, The Mother Abbess and Elsa Schraeder by Michael Praed, Marilyn Hill Smith and Jacinta Mulcahy respectively. My personal cast highlight though was Martin Callaghan as Max Detweiller. Callaghan created such a fully-formed character out of a part that has merely drifted by as a cameo in previous productions which such humour and confidence that he totally ‘stole the show’ from his counterparts.
Connie Fisher in The Sound of Music
The supporting cast were also surprisingly good. All 7 children were strong musically and dramatically and the chorus of nuns created a beautiful sound that carried through the theatre very powerfully.
The entire cast were supported well by the orchestra who played the remarkable new orchestrations by Robert Russell Bennett. Thankfully, the producers opted to include the love duet from the movie (Something Good) and not the stage show (An Ordinary Couple) although I must complain about how rushed some of the songs seemed. This song in particular with its marching bass line seemed to rush by like a locomotive.
It’s hard to review the core aspects of an age-old classic show like The Sound of Music without offending people. If one were to review it like a new musical, one would say (well, I certainly would say) that the music and lyrics are incredibly strong yet the book sometimes leaves something to be desired. Most people are familiar with the film, and the screenplay of the film has always been infinitely better than Lindsay & Crouse’s book for the stage show. A book that makes me feel embarrassed for the writers but also the actors who have to interpret it.
However, these aspects of the show, for me, were far outweighed by the brilliant performances and the endless appeal of The Sound of Music, a show that will live on.
4*
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