Review: NBC's The Sound of Music: Live!
I am sure back in December 2013, everyone tuned into "The Sound of Music: Live, starring Carrie Underwood on NBC! I know I did. For awhile, people have been asking me to review it. So, I went back and watched it again and with no further adieu, here is my review of "The Sound of Music: Live!"
If you are one of the 6 people who has not seen the "The Sound of Music", then this paragraph is for you. "The Sound of Music" tells the story of Maria Rainer, a postulant, who is sent away from the Abbey to become the governess to Captain Georg Von Trapp's seven children, along the way, Maria creates good relationships with the children and the Captain himself.
As I do in most of my reviews, I will start with the cast.
When it was first announced that Carrie Underwood was going to play Maria Rainer (a role played by the likes of Mary Martin, Julie Andrews, and Rebecca Luker) heads nodded all across America. We did not want Carrie Underwood to be playing this role. On December 5th as we all sat in front of our television awaiting for the program to begin, we all waited to see what Carrie Underwood would bring to the role. Would she be awful? Would she be fantastic? By the end of the program....I thought Carrie Underwood....did fine. Vocally, Carrie Underwood did a wonderful job. I really enjoyed listening to her sing that score, she brought something new and fresh to it. Acting wise, Carrie Underwood fell flat. While she did do a fine job acting in some scenes, I didn't feel much emotion from her a majority of the time.
In the male lead of Captain Georg Von Trapp, Stephen Boyer did a well job, like Underwood, his acting did fall a bit flat in a few scenes, he was clearly much more experienced than Underwood. Underwood and Boyer showed a great chemistry and the scenes with Captain Von Trapp, were Underwood's most believable.
Perhaps the strongest part of the production was Audra McDonald's portrayal of The Mother Abbess. Her performance was flawless and her rendition of "Climb Every Mountain" was astounding. McDonald may just be my favorite in the role.
More perfect performances came from Laura Benanti as Baroness Elsa Schrader and Christian Borle as Max Detwieler. Of course, we all must admit that the best part of this production was Laura Benanti's side-eye to Carrie Underwood.
Rounding out the cast in the roles of the Von Trapp children, in order from oldest to youngest are Ariane Rinehart (Liesl), Michael Nigro (Fredrich), Ella Watts-Gorman (Louisa), Joe West (Kurt), Sophia Ann Caruso (Brigitta), Grace Rundhaug (Marta), and Peyton Ella (Gretel). All 7 of children did a great job in their roles, but some of the children's (specifically the 3 youngest) performances were a bit overdone.
SHOUT OUT TO NBC FOR DOING THE SHOW AS ORIGINALLY WRITTEN
Also, the people who were complaining that the songs were "out of order" and that "she didn't twirl in the opening number, there was no Gazebo in '16 Going on 17', etc." need to educate themselves on the original musical and need to remember that this was not a remake of the movie.
I think the sets and costumes for this production were really awesome. The staging was also really great as well. Overall, the production's strongest quality was the supporting cast and ensemble. In the ensemble, you can spot familiar faces including Ashley Brown (Former Maria and currently playing the Mother Abbess in a touring production) Autumn Hurlburt (yes, the one from MTV's The Search for the Next Elle Woods).
While the lead was not very strong in certain aspects and there were some flaws in the staging, I give the entire production 3 and a half stars.
If you are one of the 6 people who has not seen the "The Sound of Music", then this paragraph is for you. "The Sound of Music" tells the story of Maria Rainer, a postulant, who is sent away from the Abbey to become the governess to Captain Georg Von Trapp's seven children, along the way, Maria creates good relationships with the children and the Captain himself.
As I do in most of my reviews, I will start with the cast.
When it was first announced that Carrie Underwood was going to play Maria Rainer (a role played by the likes of Mary Martin, Julie Andrews, and Rebecca Luker) heads nodded all across America. We did not want Carrie Underwood to be playing this role. On December 5th as we all sat in front of our television awaiting for the program to begin, we all waited to see what Carrie Underwood would bring to the role. Would she be awful? Would she be fantastic? By the end of the program....I thought Carrie Underwood....did fine. Vocally, Carrie Underwood did a wonderful job. I really enjoyed listening to her sing that score, she brought something new and fresh to it. Acting wise, Carrie Underwood fell flat. While she did do a fine job acting in some scenes, I didn't feel much emotion from her a majority of the time.
In the male lead of Captain Georg Von Trapp, Stephen Boyer did a well job, like Underwood, his acting did fall a bit flat in a few scenes, he was clearly much more experienced than Underwood. Underwood and Boyer showed a great chemistry and the scenes with Captain Von Trapp, were Underwood's most believable.
Perhaps the strongest part of the production was Audra McDonald's portrayal of The Mother Abbess. Her performance was flawless and her rendition of "Climb Every Mountain" was astounding. McDonald may just be my favorite in the role.
More perfect performances came from Laura Benanti as Baroness Elsa Schrader and Christian Borle as Max Detwieler. Of course, we all must admit that the best part of this production was Laura Benanti's side-eye to Carrie Underwood.
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| Laura Benanti's side eye |
Rounding out the cast in the roles of the Von Trapp children, in order from oldest to youngest are Ariane Rinehart (Liesl), Michael Nigro (Fredrich), Ella Watts-Gorman (Louisa), Joe West (Kurt), Sophia Ann Caruso (Brigitta), Grace Rundhaug (Marta), and Peyton Ella (Gretel). All 7 of children did a great job in their roles, but some of the children's (specifically the 3 youngest) performances were a bit overdone.
SHOUT OUT TO NBC FOR DOING THE SHOW AS ORIGINALLY WRITTEN
Also, the people who were complaining that the songs were "out of order" and that "she didn't twirl in the opening number, there was no Gazebo in '16 Going on 17', etc." need to educate themselves on the original musical and need to remember that this was not a remake of the movie.
I think the sets and costumes for this production were really awesome. The staging was also really great as well. Overall, the production's strongest quality was the supporting cast and ensemble. In the ensemble, you can spot familiar faces including Ashley Brown (Former Maria and currently playing the Mother Abbess in a touring production) Autumn Hurlburt (yes, the one from MTV's The Search for the Next Elle Woods).
While the lead was not very strong in certain aspects and there were some flaws in the staging, I give the entire production 3 and a half stars.
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