The Sound of Music Live

To compare the ITV British SOUND OF MUSIC LIVE! production to the beloved (but still flawed) 1965 film is utter nonsense. It's like comparing apples and oranges, because they are two different media. Resources were available for the film that the stage production couldn't hope to utilize. More to the point, how does it compare to the NBC-TV 2013 Live production that starred Carrie Underwood?

The answer is that it's miles better! The production is excellent, and while I disagree with a few things (such as replacing "An Ordinary Couple" with "Something Good" and abridging a couple of the songs; hence the two stars off a ten-star rating), watching it was generally time very well spent. The cast was youthful and appealing, and - more to the point - everyone could actually act! The sugary sweetness of the show was, by-and-large, swept away.

The music was well-paced, and although I missed the original orchestrations, the ones used did no harm and didn't sound out of place. I have to admit that I hated the American version when it aired. Most fatally, Carrie Underwood, simply couldn't act, and the scenes dragged. No such problem here. I missed this when it was first broadcast by PBS in 2018, so I'm very happy that I happened to catch it last night.

An enthusiastic thumbs-up!.

The book and score are closer to the original R&H version. "I Have Confidence" is missing but the movie song "Something Good" is added. Two minor original songs added and I can see why they were edited out of the movie. They point out how "shallow" the rich Capt. and Countess really were. Very well produced and directed UK "stage" version which was telecast there live in 2015. I do not (personally) like the 2 jarring real newsreel clips, but they are quite short and certainly get the point across that the real thing was no "romp in the park." British accents of course but that can't be helped. Great acting and singing performances from a cast that is (probably) unknown here in "The States". A few slightly off-key notes are expected in a truly live performance but this doesn't spoil a thing. Maria is "cast" a bit older than I expected. It's all 100% first-rate. 10 stars and 2 hankies. Shown on PBS' Great Performances series in November 2018. To those user reviewers that complain at the differences between between this and the popular movie, I suspect that they have not seen (many) live or taped performances of plays or musicals on stage. There is a huge difference between the two as a stage version can have only a few major set changes, and backdrops are usually painted but today may be digital.

Real facts: In truth, they traveled to the border at the end of their property and escaped by train to Italy. Therefore, they did not hike over the Swiss Alps. All the real children's names are different. "Edelweiss" is not an Austrian folk song! The real story only vaguely resembles this story and there are far too many differences to explain here. The "timeline" is totally different. There are several Internet articles that cover this subject. Also, look for "My Story" by Maria Von Trapp, published in 1949, for the true story.

I've loved "The Sound of Music" since I saw the movie when I was nine. Since then, I've seen several stage productions (both good and bad) along with seeing the movie countless times. With NBC's Live version in 2013, I was excited to see the story brought to life again but was left ultimately disappointed and wanting to forget it.

Then, I discovered that ITV had produced their own version and after seeing some clips online, I wanted to see more. In short, this is a wonderful production. The sets are so detailed (especially Maria's mountain and the family's garden) and unlike the NBC version, I never felt like I was watching actors in a studio. Kara Tointon is wonderful as Maria and was just a joy to watch. All of the kids were great too.

Granted, it's not an entirely perfect production (they only had one time to perform this after all), I didn't really care for the "Sixteen Going on Seventeen" scene, the dancing was boring and I thought Rolf was just an okay singer. There are some awkward camera angles and a moment where the camera stays on a Nazi officer who demands that the family sing before abruptly cutting to the festival. But these are all just minor things and didn't take away from my enjoyment of a new production of a familiar story. I loved it so much that I bought the DVD!

As a revival of the stage musical, it is not so bad. I like this Maria, young and spirited. Yes, a little tense, as mentioned in the other review, but still in a cute way.

Julian Overden as the captain is a surprise for me. He sings so much better than the captain in the movie. But of course his acting is no match to Christopher Plummer who is a more convincing decorated sea captain of authority. Julian still looks like Charles Blake in Downton Abbey.

What amuses me so much than the rest is one song not included in the movie, How does love survive. The tune is catchy, the lyrics is hilarious, but not in accordance with the rest of songs. No wonder they took it out in the movie.

I enjoyed the solid British style of this production and although I can see why Christopher Plummer's military bearing might not be matched in this version, it isn't a fair comparison to me. I found the sets and the singing, albeit not so polished as on film, far more immediately engaging and the 'live' feel came across really well. A great treat, found by chance on the itv hub from its broadcast in the final days of last year (2017) - a Sunday night jewel.