A truly interactive night with
The Sound of Music

Sing Along With Julie!
Cheer The Von Trapp Kids!
Boo The Nazis!
Hiss The Baroness!

by Phil Thron

But in this case fans are encouraged to participate, to the tune of a new print with subtitles during the songs, and an emcee (dressed in a nun’s habit) presiding over the festivities. 

This past Wednesday night this new show had its American debut at one of New York’s greatest movie houses, The Ziegfeld, and we were fortunate enough to attend. The opulent movie-palace style of this grand old theatre, combined with state-of-the-art technical facilities make it absolutely perfect for this modern celebration of a classic film.

Several cast members from the movie were in attendance and were introduced to the audience’s delight. Kym Karath, the young Gretl was there, as were Daniel Truhitte, who played Rolf (“bark whenever Rolf comes on screen...”), and Charmian Carr, who played the eldest girl, Liesl, Rolf’s fancy in the famous gazebo scene. An ‘ambassador’ for the movie, her book, ‘Forever Liesl’ is about her experiences during and since the filming. During the intermission... remember those?... eager fans waited for autographs which were graciously given.

Charmian “Liesl” Carr giving an autograph

Daniel “Ralf” Truhitte talking to the fans

The funniest pun of the night came when a man in Hassidic dress came up on stage. The emcee asked what he was dressed as. “I’m a Jew,” he said. “As in Adieu AJew.” The place went wild with laughter.

There were many great costumes, but the deserving winner was the most creative. A huge umbrella had its sides extended into blue and white tent flaps; it was The Gazebo. What set it apart, though, was that when this costume was introduced, a man stepped partway out from beneath the flaps and went back inside. A moment later a woman stepped out. Only when ‘she’ came far out of the flap did the audience realize that it was the same man dressed one gender on each side! It was barely a contest after that.

With the contest over the audience was invited to look in the plastic bags hanging in front of every seat. Inside were a host of little props, which the emcee explained were for interactive purposes during the film. A swatch of cloth was to be waved when Maria is looking for material to make new clothes for the children. Plastic edelweiss to wave during that wonderful song. The most raucous and fun were the ‘champagne poppers’ that everyone was to pull when Maria and The Captain have their first kiss. Over a thousand people popping these things with streamers flying everywhere was just a hoot. We were told to boo the nazis and to wave our arms and call out for Maria during the opening sequence and any time the mountains were featured, to “awwww” whenever Gretl was particularly precious, and to hiss whenever the Baroness came onscreen.

It’s a tribute to the enduring popularity of this movie that so many people were intimate with almost every detail in every scene, from dialogue, to blocking, to costuming, to the subtle gestures of a character. Evidence that ‘The Sound of Music’ is one of those rare films that has left a permanent mark on the consciousness of culture. This show will be making it’s way to theaters in the US very soon and I highly recommend it as a really fun evening out.

Having not seen the movie in over 10 years, it was great to see it again and with such an enthusiastic audience. I confess, though, that it left me anxious to see the movie uninterrupted. Time to get that DVD...