In 1965 the 20th Century Fox motion picture version of The Sound of Music was released in theatres. Directed by Robert Wise, with a screenplay by Ernest Lehman, it boasted a dream cast: Julie Andrews as Maria, Christopher Plummer as the Captain, Eleanor Parker as Elsa and Peggy Wood as the Mother Abbess. The film made Hollywood history; after the premiere … Read More
1961 West End Premiere
On May 18, 1961, The Sound of Music made its debut at the Palace Theatre in London’s West End, starring Jean Bayless as Maria. This landmark premiere transfer ran almost twice as long as the New York production, boasting a staggering 2,386 performances. It was the longest run of a Broadway show in London at the time; the production was … Read More
1961 First National Tour
Originally led by Florence Henderson, the first national touring company of The Sound of Music began at the Riviera Theatre in Detroit on February 27, 1961. The tour completed its run, 35 cities and more than two-and-a-half years later, at Toronto’s O’Keefe Center on November 23, 1963, with Barbara Meister in the lead.
1959 Original Broadway Production
Starring Mary Martin as Maria and Theodore Bikel as Captain von Trapp, the original Broadway production of The Sound of Music premiered at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on November 16, 1959, where it won five Tony Awards, including Best Musical and Best Leading Actress. It later moved to the Mark Hellinger, where it would end its lauded run on June 15, 1963 after … Read More
Something Good
As the Captain and Maria confess their unexpected love to each other, they quietly agree that their good fortune is due to having done “Something Good” in their pasts. Written by Richard Rodgers alone for the 1965 film, “Something Good” is a beautiful, quiet duet for Maria and the Captain. Replacing “An Ordinary Couple” from the Broadway version, this song … Read More
Edelweiss
“Edelweiss,” a musical tribute to his homeland, is sung by Baron von Trapp at the concert. Evoking an authentic Austrian folk ballad, the song serves as subtle protest against the Nazi annexation of the Captain’s beloved Austria. The stage musical makes reference to the song having been sung earlier, but the scene is not depicted. In the film, that scene … Read More
1959 Original Broadway Cast
Produced by the legendary Goddard Lieberson, this celebrated Original Broadway Cast album of The Sound of Music was recorded at Columbia’s 30th Street Studios on November 22, 1959 soon after its Broadway opening. The recording entered the Billboard Top 50 mono charts the week before Christmas, and when the record reached #1 on the stereo charts on January 29, 1960, … Read More
Sixteen Going on Seventeen (Reprise)
In the reprise of “Sixteen Going on Seventeen,” Maria, just home from her honeymoon with the Captain, encourages Liesl to “wait a year or two” in her relationship with Rolf. The reprise contains a special verse: “A bell is no bell till you ring it, a song is no song till you sing it, and love in your heart wasn’t … Read More
An Ordinary Couple
After the Captain and his new governess, a former postulant, fall in love and confess the unexpected nature of their feelings, they dream about an ordinary, happy future together. “An Ordinary Couple” is a simple yet sincere song that beautifully romanticizes the idyllic comfort of everyday domestic, married life. While the moment in the story remains in the movie, 20th … Read More
No Way to Stop it
After avoiding the subject for most of their visit, Elsa and Max talk plainly with the Captain about responding to the coming Anschluss. Max and Elsa, who’d rather make friends than enemies, encourage the Captain to “compromise” and be “non-committal.” But he remains steadfast in his loyalty to his homeland and refuses to capitulate. “No Way to Stop It” is … Read More