Review- The Sound of Music- Lunchbox Productions
18-5-15
This is definitely one of my favourite things in Hong Kong this year!
By: Lisa Middleton
So, I liked the movie as a kid, I remember putting a white towel over my head and singing ‘The Hills are Alive’ at a very early age in my back garden, I remember it playing on TV every Christmas in the background to family squabbles and arguments over who had the most chocolate in their stocking. So I wasn’t expecting to be so impressed by the stage production. I tried, I really tried to find a flaw, just a little one but with no success. I had goosebumps in parts, I had tears in my eyes in others and a few of those tears fell down my cheeks!
There was so much perfection in this play it is difficult to know where to start. But basically the essence of what makes this production are the actors – yes, the set, lights and costume all added to the grandness but let me first talk about the actors. Six of the seven von Trapp children are played by a rotation of 20 of Hong Kong’s young actors and actresses which is an aspect I loved – how can this not endear the production to the hearts of Hong Kongers? All the children acted with utter professionalism, never breaking character; every line was delivered with clarity and confidence but most of all each one of them looked like they were having the time of their lives. One standout young performer for me was Tommy Avery who played Kurt – he had an amazing singing voice and stood out to me from the first line he sang. Every cue was perfect for lines, for songs, for places, – the Do-Re-Mi delivery was utterly engaging and delightful. I thought nothing would have been sweeter than the macaroons handed to me in the foyer but this definitely was the sweetest part of the play.
Maria (Carmen Pretorius) and Captain von Trapp (Mark Rayment) played their respective parts with ease and the chemistry between them was evident. Facial expressions and physicality ensured that nothing of their character was lost – the stiff-upper-lip of Captain von Trapp and the feistiness of Maria were never lost for one moment. Mother Abbess (Janelle Visagie) gave me my first goosebumps at a live production with her performance of Climb Every Mountain at the end of Act One; it was so powerful I think the whole audience was holding their breath. Bravo! Bravo!
Often this play is just seen as a superficial musical from Rodgers and Hammerstein's ‘factory of music’ but this production brought a humanity and depth to the issues going on in the outside world; having armed soldiers march through the audience added menace and tension to the danger the von Trapp family faced.
Scene changes and costume changes happened so smoothly it was remarkable there was not a flushed face in sight. The setting and costumes (Robert Jones) and lighting (Mark Henderson) were so detailed and realistic it was almost like watching a movie at times, or at least a filter from Instagram! I really was looking for flaws honestly – there were just none! I was impressed by every single aspect of this production. The audience on Saturday night thought so too – the standing ovation spoke for itself.
The Sound of Music is playing through June 21st. For more information, click here.
Comments
Gina
This is a wonderful production! Worth every penny. Thank you to all the performers and the technicians for a great experience. I think this is my favorite show I've seen all year. The kids were adorable.
08 June 2015