The Sound of Music - Theatre Royal
Despite it being on lots of 'Movies You Must See Before You Die' lists, I’ve never actually seen The Sound Of Music.
This is because musicals and I have never really got on and I’m not entirely sure why.
However, The Theatre Academy’s production of The Sound Of Music went quite a long way towards changing my mind.
For a start, there were a lot of scripted comedic moments (which were funnier than I expected) as well as unintentionally funny moments such as when Simon Shaw’s Max Detweiler was told that he had a phone call waiting while the children were singing 'So Long, Farewell' off-stage, with the result that it sounded like his ringtone.
The set design and transitions between scenes were also impeccable, considering that in many cases heavy furniture had to be shifted within about 10 seconds.
Of course, the songs are the bread and butter of any musical, so you’ll all be glad to hear that they were done well. The singers all had harmonious voices and the songs never got annoying, which is good as many of them were repeated. Special attention must go to the Concert Hall scene, which earned some rapturous rounds of applause and contained some great performances.
While there were solid performances from most of the cast, the one that really stood out for me was Lee Thomas as Captain Von Trapp. There was something in his manner of delivery and acting style that made him by far my favourite performer of the night and a joy to watch. When the Hollywood ideas well runs dry again in 20 years time, I’m sure he’ll be first choice for The Sound Of Music 2: Edelweiss Boogaloo.
If you’re into musicals, you could do a lot worse than this show. The Theatre Academy has certainly succeeded in their goal of producing a musical to a professional standard, and for this I applaud them.
As I proved tonight, even if you don’t like musicals this is well worth a watch!
The Sound of Music runs at Theatre Royal until Saturday.
Click below to see more pictures from the production.
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