Sound of Music - Chichester Festival Theatre

[sophie92]

Jul 11, 2023 13:40:30 GMT @original9 said:

My mum always said after seeing the film, the stage version never seems as good but she still enjoyed it a couple of times I took her to see it.

Gina is nearing 40 so possibly on the older side but wasn't the legendary Petula Clark nearly 50 when she played the role. Dame Julie was 29/30 when the film was made and Gina can pass for younger. Once the girl playing Liesl was older than the actress playing Maria in one production I saw but the Lisel actresses could pass for much younger.

In the 2013 Regent’s Park production, Faye Brookes who played Liesl is a few years older than Charlotte Wakefield who played Maria.

[FairyGodmother]

That's a shame. I was hoping it would be good because the last tour I saw was not good.

The Reverend Mother forgot to come in at the beginning of Climb Every Mountain, Captain von Trapp spent a lot of time staring broodily into the middle distance then saying his lines as if he were reading off a board at the back, and Rolf was so camp I don't think Liesl would have had much chance even without the Anschluss!

Fingers crossed it's just early wobbles.

[j85]

I went to see it a couple of nights ago. I’ve only seen one amateur production in the past (and most of the film) so knew most of it in some way or another. Felt this production managed to convey the different settings well, but changes were a bit lengthy (which with time will shorten I’m sure). Having read the programme essays, it’s difficult to see an age gap between Maria and the captain, but if you’re unaware there’s meant to be one then it’s not an issue. The kids were great - a healthy level of sweet and bratish at times, and they were confident in their roles which, considering it’s in previews, is great to see.

My biggest annoyance, and this was the same with last year’s Crazy for You is that it’s been directed for a transfer and not necessarily for the CFT stage. It’s all performed out to the front - and even this isn’t to the front, but mainly to one diagonal area of the audience. I’m not sure how to post a pic to show where it’s performed out to, but you ideally want to be sat in the areas around Door 2 and Door 4 (looking at a seating plan, facing the left diagonal of the point of the stage). In the production shots that have been posted, this is facing the big round steps coming off the curve. Maybe this will have changed a bit, as the night I was in, I noticed the director coming out a door that led to the other side of the auditorium - but I doubt it’ll have changed massively. There’s also a huge wall that shows the abbot that comes out the back wall that looks like it’d block your view being on the other side of it.

It went down very well with the audience - much better reception than Assassins did when I went on the last night of that (and much fuller than assassins was) and I fully expect critics and the typical CFT audiences to be happy with it too. Worth a visit, but not the best thing I’ve seen this summer.

[theatreian]

Jul 11, 2023 13:40:30 GMT @original9 said:

the legendary Petula Clark nearly 50 when she played the role.

You are quite right Petula was 49 :Petula did not return to legitimate theatre until 1981, starring as Maria von Trapp in The Sound of Music in the West End of London. Opening to positive reviews and what was then the largest advance sale in British theatre history, Clark—proclaimed by Maria Von Trapp herself as "the best Maria ever"—extended her initial six-month run to 13 to accommodate the huge demand for tickets[23][54] and receiving a Laurence Olivier Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical.

[emsworthian]

There seems to be a divergence between the generally negative reviews on here and the overwhelmingly positive comments about it from audience members on twitter. I'm going next week so I'll ledt you know what I think.

[BurlyBeaR]

Don’t forget to record your score in our poll if you’ve seen it!

[c4ndyc4ne]

Jul 14, 2023 12:53:43 GMT emsworthian said:

There seems to be a divergence between the generally negative reviews on here and the overwhelmingly positive comments about it from audience members on twitter. I'm going next week so I'll ledt you know what I think.

I do think people are less compelled to say mean things on Twitter where casts also regularly interact + read things. At least here there’s more anonymity.

[toomasj]

Travelling home from this afternoon’s matinee performance.

I absolutely loved this sparkling production. As a fan of the movie, before today I thought the stage treatment simply wasn’t for me. I was left cold by Connie Fisher in the West End and subsequent tour (a miscast Jason Donovan didn’t help matters), but I’ve completely changed my view thanks to this warm and heartfelt version.

It is true that show is greater than the sum of its parts. The set is efficient and “gets the job done” without being spectacular, the direction is sturdy and faithful rather than revolutionary. Projections are used very sparingly; there’s a trapdoor, the usual and expected use of the auditorium’s entrances, a couple of trucks on tracks - nothing earth shattering. I did have a little quiet giggle as Mother Abbess was raised up in her chair through the trapdoor, I don’t know why but it reminded me of Rocky Horror or something. A bit silly looking!

Where it truly shines is in a very strong cast, led by Gina Beck, who in my view is Britain’s finest musical theatre leading lady.

Beck’s Maria is genuinely warm. At times funny, vulnerable, beautiful and frightened, she acts the part magnificently. The real magic happens of course when she sings; and she sings the hell out of these famous classics with style, her soaring soprano and no small amount of power.

I was a bit concerned at first by a very shouty couple of opening scenes from Edward Harrison’s Captain von Trapp, but by the end I was absolutely sold. Harrison isn’t an amazing singer by any means, but he holds his own and his character’s arc was beautifully realised by the actor. The children’s cast (and Liesl) were wonderful, as was the ensemble, with strong work by the ever reliable Wendy Ferguson, the underrated Emma Williams as Elsa and of course Janis Kelly as Mother Abbess, who absolutely nailed “Climb Ev’ry Mountain” to a massive ovation.

The first act is very much front-loaded with classic songs; I had forgotten how old-school the transitioning into musical numbers is in this - and other classic musicals. It’s not an issue for me, but it might be jarring for some to have musical numbers with literally no purpose in the plot. Thunderstorm? Better sing a completely unrelated song! The second Act uses a lot of reprises, and the “new” songs are forgettable - but “Edelweiss” is beautifully staged, so it all pays off in my view!

For balance, a couple of nitpicks; the set changes looked a touch messy and could’ve been quicker and tighter in my view. Ako Mitchell didn’t work as Max - on many levels - and his motivations and actions are muddied and muddled due to the nature of the casting decision. His diction also wasn’t the best, although he did win a few laughs. As said above, the show is somewhat front-loaded and the second Act doesn’t introduce many new melodies. Some of the direction is hamstrung by the CFT’s stage arrangement, and central block is definitely the place to be. But none of these are major gripes.

The audience - surprisingly enough given its reputation - were absolutely electric at the performance I attended. Whooping, cheering and huge applause for many of the strongest numbers (“The Lonely Goatherd”, “Climb Ev’ry Mountain” and several others). A huge spontaneous standing ovation immediately on the final blackout was very telling. The audience absolutely loved this. This afternoon’s performance was described as sold out by the theatre, and I didn’t spot many empty seats.

If I were a betting man, I would “get on huge” for this to transfer into the West End. It is an absolute banker, the set can go into a mid-sized venue as is. The question would be whether Gina Beck would be willing to work in town 6-8 shows a week. I suspect a transfer might hinge on this.

One of the easiest 5*s I’ve given. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it is extremely faithful, honest and staged with love.

[capybara]

Got a double show day of this and Rock Follies coming up next month.

Can’t wait.

[theatrelover97]

I am not sure if it's normal pre reviews but it is not selling that well except for matinées. Lots of seats still available. Would that affect it's transfer chances. Looking forward to going later this month.

[tmesis]

Saw the matinee today and absolutely loved it. This is the third production of S of M I’ve seen and definitely the best. I liked Edward Harrison’s portrayal of the Captain and, unlike some, I found his voice attractive. Janis Kelly (an opera singer I loved in her prime at ENO - she was a terrific Butterfly) had the necessary heft for Climb Ev’ry Mountain and brought the house down, as she is meant to at the end of Act 1. The children were all excellent and their concerted harmonic singing was very accurate (and in tune) - not always a given! Also some beautiful singing from the nuns at the start - what clever pastiche religious music Rodgers writes here - in fact the whole musical made me in awe at his incredible talent; no other composer has quite his rich fund of melody.

Oh and Gina Beck was the best Maria I’ve seen - she made it completely her own; all others I’ve seen have not so much played the part as played Julie Andrews playing the part.

[Deleted]

Jul 15, 2023 17:44:49 GMT toomasj said:

If I were a betting man, I would “get on huge” for this to transfer into the West End. It is an absolute banker, the set can go into a mid-sized venue as is. The question would be whether Gina Beck would be willing to work in town 6-8 shows a week. I suspect a transfer might hinge on this.

One of the easiest 5*s I’ve given. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it is extremely faithful, honest and staged with love.

Gina has done lots of shows and was doing South Pacific on tour within the last year so a West End transfer as the star of the show would be a no brainer IMO. If the vocal demand would be too much to do 8 shows over a longer West End run then maybe Emma could get the chance to do a couple of the shows and finally play Maria in the West End with her understudy doing the Baroness for these performances.

[toomasj]

Jul 16, 2023 2:55:43 GMT @original9 said:

Jul 15, 2023 17:44:49 GMT toomasj said:

If I were a betting man, I would “get on huge” for this to transfer into the West End. It is an absolute banker, the set can go into a mid-sized venue as is. The question would be whether Gina Beck would be willing to work in town 6-8 shows a week. I suspect a transfer might hinge on this.

One of the easiest 5*s I’ve given. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it is extremely faithful, honest and staged with love.

Gina has done lots of shows and was doing South Pacific on tour within the last year so a West End transfer as the star of the show would be a no brainer IMO. If the vocal demand would be too much to do 8 shows over a longer West End run then maybe Emma could get the chance to do a couple of the shows and finally play Maria in the West End with her understudy doing the Baroness for these performances.

Hello. I was referring to Ms. Beck’s personal circumstances, meaning eight shows a week in London may not suit her other responsibilities. I do not discuss actors private lives when outside of the public domain but it is public knowledge that she has two young children and role-shared in South Pacific with Alex Young to facilitate a healthy work/life balance. (https://www.sussexexpress.co.uk/arts-and-culture/theatre-and-stage/south-pacific-role-sharing-after-happy-pregnancy-news-at-cft-3250442)

I was making a point that the performer may not want to live and work in London performing a gruelling eight shows a week due to her private life. Naturally I support and respect whatever she chooses.

[Being Alive]

She role shared with Alex Young because she was pregnant before starting rehearsals (and essentially I think did the show until she was 7 months pregnant) - it wasn't for any other reason.

The following year she then went on tour with the show for 5 months.

I think she'd manage a London run just fine - in fact it would be easier than what she's already done.

[Deleted]

Thanks Being Alive for confirming why Gina shared the role in South Pacific. I'd suspect that a West End run would probably be easier for a working mum like Gina if she is based in London but if her children are still pre-school age they would be "portable" in theory.

But a lot would depend where the performer is based. Thanks for posting the link Toomasj, I'll take a read of the article.

[141920grm]

portable 😂😂😂

[theatrelover97]

Jul 14, 2023 12:53:43 GMT emsworthian said:

There seems to be a divergence between the generally negative reviews on here and the overwhelmingly positive comments about it from audience members on twitter. I'm going next week so I'll ledt you know what I think.

That seems to be reflected in the critics. The locally based ones are very positive while the London based ones less so.

[Being Alive]

Telegraph, Stage, Evening Standard all 4s...

Without a soaring tenor as Von Trapp (Ovenden), SOM is probably a 4 star musical if you don't try to reinvent the wheel, which they evidently haven't.

[SuttonPeron]

Von Trap is a baritone role though... Let baritones have their roles too!
Though Ovenden would´ve been marvelous.

[shorn]

Whatsonstage is 3 stars and seems to reflect comments here

[mrbarnaby]

I’m not sure this has had good enough reviews for a transfer?

[toomasj]

I’m sorry for repeatedly banging this drum, but Gina Beck really is terrific in this as the reviews reflect. Worth the ticket price alone.

[couldileaveyou]

Jul 18, 2023 14:39:36 GMT mrbarnaby said:

I’m not sure this has had good enough reviews for a transfer?

Maybe they could market it as a Christmas show between November and January but defo not a an open ended run or a 6 months residency. Or they could get a name for the captain

[theatremiss]

Jul 18, 2023 12:47:09 GMT SuttonPeron said:

Von Trap is a baritone role though... Let baritones have their roles too!
Though Ovenden would´ve been marvelous.

I was hoping for him too. I can’t recall the guy that played Von Trapp but he sounded like a goat all the way through it. Awful casting.

[Jon]

Jul 18, 2023 17:09:46 GMT couldileaveyou said:

Jul 18, 2023 14:39:36 GMT mrbarnaby said:

I’m not sure this has had good enough reviews for a transfer?

Maybe they could market it as a Christmas show between November and January but defo not a an open ended run or a 6 months residency. Or they could get a name for the captain

A Christmas run is unlikely given the limited number of suitable theatres.