The Sound of Music
Mt. Carroll is alive with The Sound of Music.
This Rodgers and Hammerstein classic is another one of those shows that I appreciate, but am not necessarily a huge fan of. However, after attending the Saturday matinėe of the Timber Lake Playhouse’s production, the musical grew on me. It was a touching, endearing, and eventually somber theatre experience.
The Sound of Music, as you probably don't need to be told, follows Maria, a novice who leaves her Abbey to care for the children of the widowed Captain von Trapp, enlightening them with music and laughter. As the rise of the Nazi party creeps in, the story takes a downbeat turn, changing their lives and where their hearts lie. Directed by Anthony C. Daniel, the overall presentation was staged well and featured a sensational cast.
Portraying Maria is Mollie-Claire Matthews, whose performance was lively, engaging, and just so endearing. Her voice was bright and beautiful, and Matthews' effortless and playful interactions with the ensemble of von Trapp kids was a joy to watch. Captain von Trapp is played by Andrew Fahrenbacher, whose vocals were beautiful, especially in the final “Edelweiss.” His moments during the heavy ending were particularly touching, with Fahrenbacher and Matthews sharing fine rapport throughout.
Portraying Mother Abbess at this particular performance was this role’s understudy Mardi Huffstutler. She delivered a great performance – I especially enjoyed her and Maria’s “(A Few of) My Favorite Things” in the Abbey. Makenzi Ruff, as Liesl, also gave a dynamic performance, allowing the audience to feel her journey of love, care for her siblings, and eventual fear at the show’s end. “Sixteen Going on Seventeen” is a kind of a problematic song these days, and the chemistry between Ruff, Bryant Howard, who plays Rolf, was a little off – which I guess is maybe the point: Their relationship is sort of just doomed from the beginning. Howard’s romantic arc with Liesl, however, and his turn toward following the Nazis was nicely acted.
With most of them double-cast and performing at only half of the performances each, the ensemble of von Trapp kids were all full of light, energy, wit, and cuteness. From the sassy and honest Brigitta (played wonderfully at this performance by Rosemary Heckard) to the adorable youngest of the bunch, Gretl (Kyneddi Smith), each had distinct personality, making their scenes a hoot. Meanwhile, the supporting figures of Max and Elsa were an engaging duo in many of The Sound of Music's dialogue-heavy moments scenes. Captain von Trapp’s brother Max (Darren Mangler) delivered a lot of the comedic-relief dialogue offered, and the performer interacted well with von Trapp and Elsa (Bryanna Cuthill), von Trapp’s initial wife-to-be. She had a troublesome but entertaining song with Max, “No Way To Stop It,” sung toward von Trapp, which pointed to the bystander attitude regarding the rise of Nazi powers.
There were, unfortunately, a handful of technical errors at this performance, mostly involving projections and lighting cues. This is disappointing, because I knew what the creative team was going for – they just happened to not quite work out at this performance. The projections glitched out quite a bit, and some of the effects felt necessary in the first place (namely the Abbey's side-scrolling stained glass). There were also a handful of isolated lighting cues, mostly at the buttons of songs, that didn’t quite hit the mark, with characters left in darkness instead of their isolated specials. It's my hope that these issues were resolved for the remainder of the performances; because the quality of Daniels' show is otherwise stellar; having polished technical cues to match would make it even better.
Outside of random cue and placement issues, the technical design itself was superb. Designer Claire Sabaj's costumes were bright, interesting, and glamorous across the board. Some of my favorites include Captain von Trapp’s sleek green suit, the elegant party costumes worn by the production's ensemble, and, of course, the brightly patterned curtain outfits worn by the von Trapp kids.
Dylan Carter's lighting design was simple, but created some truly beautiful moments – some the most notable moments of the show being the night scenes, namely “Sixteen Going on Seventeen” and the final Abbey escape scene. The lighting design, casting large shadows and employing an array of nighttime hues and gobos, gorgeously matched the beauty of the nuns' singing in this climactic sequence, with a special shout-out to music director Oliver Townsend for its vocally power.
This was also my first time experiencing the Timber Lake Playhouse, so I was amazed by the set's giant turntable. Daniel's staging utilized it marvelously, and in the “So Long, Farewell” reprise, the placement of actors, intentionally harsh lighting, and emotional tug on the audience was highly effective, making me really remember why this show is both beautiful and important. Endearing, impactful, and dynamically staged with a great cast, I encourage you to take a trip to the beautiful Timber Lake Playhouse regardless of whether you're a fan of The Sound Of Music. Even though it's a very familiar show, you may just be surprised.
The Sound of Music runs at the Timber Lake Playhouse (8215 Black Oak Road, Mt. Carroll IL) through July 9, and more information and tickets are available by calling (815)244-2035 and visiting TimberLakePlayhouse.org.
