How to go
What: “The Sound of Music”
Where: Aronoff Center for the Arts, 650 Walnut St., Cincinnati
When: Sept. 27-Oct. 9; 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays-Thursdays, 8 p.m. Fridays, 2 and 7 p.m. Saturdays and 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sundays
Cost: $30-$106
More info: 513-621-2787 or www.cincinnatiarts.org
For those who will flock to the new Broadway production of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s “The Sound of Music” with nostalgic memories of Julie Andrews in their heads, it may be important to remember that the musical predated the movie, and is considerably darker than the production that’s immortalized in most people’s minds.
“It has its light and airy moments, but it’s not fluffy,” said Andrew Bacigalupo, a Fort Thomas, Ky., native and production stage manager for the show. “The Von Trapps were a real family. The theme of takeover from the Nazis, the feeling that it’s not safe, is present from the very beginning. I hear people in the audience applauding and clapping, but I also hear them gasp, because there are things in the show that make you gasp.”
Nevertheless, although you may never see someone twirling in a meadow, all of your favorite songs, such as “My Favorite Things” and the title number, will be present, although there will be different songs, as well. Bacigalupo said the freshness of this production lies a good deal in the transitions from scene to scene.
“There’s a real cinematic quality,” he said. “Everything is seamless. There is never a full blackout; the scenes move before your eyes. There might be a scene closed into a smaller area, and then it opens into a larger set behind it, and you wonder how it got there so quickly. New technology enables these kinds of transitions so you’ll experience the show a bit differently.”
Another key difference is the young actress playing Maria. Kerstin Anderson had just completed her sophomore year at Pace University when she won the role, which means she’s not only significantly younger than the two best-known Marias (Julie Andrews was 30 at the time, Mary Martin was 46 for the original production) but also younger than many of the actresses who auditioned for the role.
“Finishing a four-year program doesn’t make you more talented,” Bacigalupo said. “(Kerstin) is more appropriate to the age of this character, someone young, fresh, a bit inexperienced in the world. It creates a dynamic you don’t see in other versions.”
And in case anyone was wondering whether “The Sound of Music” was still relevant or just another dinosaur, the 2013 live-TV version starring Carrie Underwood received high ratings, with over 18 million viewers.
“That version really reminded people, the people who grew up with it, that it was out there,” Bacigalupo said. “It reached a lot of people and re-energized people’s excitement. It’s the same story but not the same show. Ours is very different.”
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