Shortly after The Sound of Music went from the stage to the screen in 1965, my mother saw it with a friend. As the story goes, when she returned home she begged her parents to go see it again. Although her family never went to the movies, and my uncle was only 5 at the time, the entire family ended up going. Over the years, I think it became more than a movie for her. It grew into something that sort of defined childhood and growing up as it has for so many people who came of age with it. Since announcing that we were going to do the show at Whitney, I can’t begin to list the amount of people who have said they wouldn’t normally go see a show, but they’ll come to see this show. There is a sense of nostalgia that continues to draw people towards it.
A show as popular as this is always linked with great expectations. I knew my wife, Mallory and I, would have a 5-6 week old baby boy by the time the show opened, which meant some sacrifices had to be made, and if I’m honest, I was fairly certain we were going to fall well below those expectations as a result. We started rehearsal a month ahead of schedule to try and curb the time lost due to my absence, but that came with its own set of challenges, such as needing a set that could represent the show, but also allow for the entire stage to be cleared for dance, choir, and band shows that would move in during that time. Other events required attention as well. There was the Lenaea Festival we compete in, showcase night, a canceled vapa rally, and just all the usual odds and ends of classes and bureaucracies of the working world. Oh, plus covid and protocols to deal with. A week before our first technical rehearsal, when we need our sound more than ever to be able to practice with microphones and practice cues with our sound effects, the power running from the amplifiers went out.
When indoor music and singing was essentially banned in 2020, suddenly deemed far more dangerous than tackling someone at full speed in an open field, it hurt our program as well as thousands of other theatre’s across the country and around the globe. And I can’t help but think about how Captain Von Trapp essentially banned music and singing from his own home, hurt by the all too painful memory it evoked of his late wife. Only Maria, with her brashness, could restore music and his life in the same way this musical is restoring our program. This is our first live musical performance since March 12, 2020, when we were told it was just 14 days until we’d be right back. So I chose this show because we needed it. We needed to bring back the music. We needed to get people in seats and share this experience with other humans. We needed to look back at the sophistication and advancements in 1938 Europe before Germany completely lost its mind. We needed to go on this journey with this family and live in their world for two hours. There is something in it that heals and understands us. I don’t know if its Maria finding her way, or the Captain healing, or the children feeling wanted, or the beauty of Austria, but something about the story continues to hold our gaze and keep us listening.
I would like to express a special thanks to my students. This year was different and more challenging for me than 2020 and I would be remiss to not thank my peer teachers, Alan, Geo, Melia, and Morgan, who basically taught my classes for 3 weeks. Melia and Geo handled the most difficult costuming we’ve ever had to manage for a show. There is no possible way I could have survived this year without them. While there is something to be said for the overly accepted apathy that might define a generation due to the pandemic, people like those four make me believe we might just be alright as we move into the future. Thank you to my parents, who are always ready and willing to help and support in every way possible. Thank you to Kris Harper and David Williams, who worked together to bring vocals and the orchestra together while I was gone. Special thanks to Roisin LeRoy, who watched over rehearsals in my absence. Thank you to Forest, who stubbornly maintains his routine of hunting, eating, cleaning, and sleeping no matter the changes around him, and to Luna, who keeps my heart healthy and wild. Finally, to my lovely wife, Mallory, who during this process, helped with auditions, choreographed the dances, set up ticketing, carried and had our firstborn son Everest, and has endured days at home with a newborn during my 13 hour days teaching and then directing.
Thank you and enjoy the show!
