St. Gabriel Miracle Players is alive!! With The Sound of Music! After two long years of waiting (and growing up!) the seven sweet von Trapp children are ready to sing their hearts out, and while they’ve grown a little taller and a little older (waiting for that pesky Covid to die down and let live musical theatre safely return to the stage) they’re bringing all the iconic songs of stage and screen to heartwarming life, reminding audiences that a few of their favorite things include attending live musical dinner theatre at St. Gabriel Miracle Players. Directed by Heidi Toll with Musical Direction by Patty DeLisle, ad Choreography by Deb Carson, this Rogers & Hammerstein classic has all of the serene songs you remember while telling the story of Maria, a postulant-nun-wannabe who finds her true calling through music and uses that same music to find herself true love.
Liz Kanner puts some lovely artistic pieces up, flanking either side of the stage for this production of Sound of Music and set the Set Construction Crew (John Connell, John Wiggins) keep scenic changes simple— from the Abbey to the von Trapp household— always surrounded by ‘the hills’ with their bright green pastures and little dots of white Edelweiss flowers. Costume Co-Conspirators Heidi Toll and Sally Kahn have come together to remind us that the time period is just at the brink of World War II when Germany was invading Austria with the Third Reich. But the real magic in the show’s sartorial selection are the too-cute-for-words outfits seen on the von Trapp children— first in their militaristic, naval-inspired togs, and later in their more joyous ‘play clothes’ that Maria has ‘sewn together from the curtains.’ Sound issues (some mic problems and overall mic balancing complications) not withstanding the design elements of this production come together just fine.
With Patty DeLisle conducting a live pit orchestra (with DeLisle on piano/keyboard, Matt Schnell on Violin 1, Susan Beck & Patricia Dick on Violin 2, Keith Amersbach on Percussion, Tony Settineri & Neil Denny on Trombone, Richard Henkel on Horn, Maureen Gould on Flute, Mary Haaser & Brian Harris on Oboe, Dave Dimmock & Dan Longo & Joe Sullivan on Clarinet, and Dave Booth on Bassoon) the ‘sounds of music’ so readily recognizable to anyone who loves the film or who has previously seen the stage production are right there beside you the entire time. DeLisle does a good job of masking the potentially overpowering sound of a live, exposed pit orchestra (setup in the school’s cafeteria, the natural sound-dampening effect of being below the stage is nonexistent in this play-space) so that they do not overplay the performers on stage.
DeLisle works with Director Heidi Toll and Choreographer Deb Carson to create a fun show, an engaging show, and a nostalgic show for everyone involve and everyone watching. Some of the scene changes struggle along in places, though like all Rogers & Hammerstein shows, The Sound of Music is long to begin with, and for the most part— the show keeps moving right along. Toll utilizes the entire house— binging the wedding party scene up through the main aisle as well as having the von Trapp children use that aisle and the Nazis when they begin to search for the von Trapp family toward the conclusion of the show.
The singing Sisters— Sister Sophia (Sydney Pelletier), Sister Margaretta (Jill Marron), Sister Berthe (Sharon Zelevsky), Sister Kaitlin (Stefanie Pawelczyk), Sister Cecelia (Pamela Jones), Sister Marie Therese (Marie Pango), and Sister Mary Lee (Mary Connelly) come together for pious sounding music during “Hymn & Alleluia” at the beginning of the show, as well as “Gaudeamus/Alleluia” later in the second act. We get to hear pointed solos from Zelevsky, Marron, and Pelletier— as Sisters Berthe, Margaretta, and Sophia respectively— during the beloved tune “(How Do You Solve a Problem Like) Maria”. These sisters are joined by the vocally angelic Kacy Conley in the role of Mother Abbess (May 6-8 performances). Conley is frank and focused when addressing Maria but has the voice of the Abbey when it comes to singing, particularly when she carries her half of “My Favorite Things.”
“…as the program says, ‘The Family von Trapp Singers…’ to quote directly from the show— and that family includes the seven impressive von Trapp children— who merrily bounce and gleefully sing all through numbers like “The Lonely Goatherd” (a song led by Maria), “Do Re Mi” (another song led by Maria) and of course “So Long/Farewell”, their adorable little ‘goodnight’ ditty at the party in the von Trapp household. Liesl (Nancy Tita), Friedrich (Austin Buerhaus), Brigitta (Sofia Babin), Louisa (Robin Desi), Kurt (Molly Connell), Marta (Carly Burd), and Gretel (Campbell Burd) make up the picture perfect von Trapp family and when they dance and sing and make merry, the audience adores them. Nancy Tita, as the eldest— Liesl— gets a lovely duet with Rolf (Alex Frazier) “16 Going on 17” and sings it again with Maria later in the show. All seven of the children bring strong voices to the songs and fond memories to those in the audience watching and listening.
While the leading adults may be the head of the von Trapp family and, of course, Maria, there are a few other grown-ups well worth mentioning. Though Zeller (Nick Tackett) cuts an imposing figure and is clearly saluting with ‘Heil’ and donning the bright red Nazi insignia, Tackett’s delivery of this particular Nazi character is so over-the-top and barky it becomes almost a form of comedic relief for the audience. (There is nothing funny about Nazis. Nothing. But because the family is hoping to escape and you are pulling for the family to win out in this production, Tackett’s portrayal of this loud, bumbling, obnoxious miscreant makes the audience feel even more hopeful that perhaps the von Trapp family will win out in the end.)
Elsa Schraeder (Deb Carson) and Max Detweiler (Joey Rolandelli) pull quite a few duets together (often featuring poor Captain Georg von Trapp as the musical third-wheel) including “How Can Love Survive” and “No Way to Stop It”, the latter of which features a cute choreographed têtê-à- têtê between Carson and Rolandelli. As the slightly standoffish Elsa, Deb Carson brings warm vocals to the role and gives the audience someone to quietly dislike (isn’t everyone trying to solve the problem like Maria by foisting her off on Captain von Trapp?). Rolandelli, on the other hand, is a scene-stealing, show-stopping comic cad. You don’t get much by way of splashy comic supporting characters in this particular Rogers & Hammerstein, but Rolandelli turns the role of Max Detweiler into exactly that, particularly when he’s vacillating over whose side of the coin to be on, whichever one serves him best. Great with the children, sharp with comic timing, and full of voice, Rolandelli is a great addition to the cast.
The infamous Captain Georg von Trapp (Paul Ballard) is a household name to be reckoned with. There is something stiff and reserved about Ballard’s von Trapp that you see from the moment he is introduced to us, with the whistle and the dismissiveness of his own children. And there is a regimented part of his personality that never truly disappears, though he softens appropriately as Maria and the children re-win over his heart. With a dulcet and almost delicate voice, when he takes to singing the songs that he does— particularly “Ordinary Couple” this is something syrupy sweet and yet earnest in his sound that really wins the audience over as well. You get little moments— like when he playfully tells Liesl ‘no’ during the first rendition of “So Long/Farewell” after she asks for champagne- or when he demands that he is Austrian and will never fly the flag of the Third Reich— all which give Ballard a solid footing in his character’s composition. Singing with seven talented children and the effervescent Maria (Katie Sheldon), Paul Ballard holds his own beautifully in this performance.
With a youthful exuberance that truly portrays the naïve and innocent nature of Maria, Katie Sheldon springs to live giving her best Julie Andrews realness to the role. With a songbird sound, Sheldon alights in musical numbers like “The Sound of Music”, and the rarely-included (The SGMP went and bought the rights extra special for this song) “I Have Confidence”, which allows Sheldon to shine in all her vocal and performative radiance. She’s quirky and clumsy, particularly when getting to know the children and its endearing. Sheldon has a great many moments— mostly shared in duet— like that with Mother Abbess during “My Favorite Things” where she carries the melody along in all its warm and bubbly glory. And when she’s bouncing the children through “The Lonely Goatherd”, watch her facial expressions (this is the song where they’re trying to all ride out the storm in Maria’s bedroom, pretending to not be frightened by the loud thunder and scary lightning outside.) Sheldon is a kind and nurturing ‘governess’ to the von Trapp children (it’s like she’s practically perfect for this part…maybe she’s been a nanny of sorts before…) and when she and Ballard finally get around to accepting the ‘love’ that poor little Brigitta has to point out to them, it’s just charming.
Come celebrate the return of musical theatre, two long years in the making over at St. Gabriel Miracle Players with their production of Roger & Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music before it is spirited away into the hills forever.
Running Time: Approximately 3 hours with one intermission
The Sound of Music plays through May 15, 2022 at The Saint Gabriel Miracle Players— 6946 Dogwood Road in the Milford Mill neighborhood of Baltimore, MD. Tickets can be purchased at the door, by calling the box office at (410) 747-5626 or by purchasing them online.
