The 1959 hit musical Sound of Music has among the best scores ever written with great Richard Rodgers tunes that tug on the heartstrings, pleasant moments of mild humour from Oscar Hammerstein II and an genuine grim context that also resonates at the moment with the every day information of invasions. It will be robust to fail in mounting a revival of this wonderful musical however equally tough to flee the reminiscence of Julie Andrews’s efficiency within the 1965 movie. Chichester Pageant’s great revival directed by Adam Penford definitely manages to not solely do the stage present full justice but in addition fantastically differentiate itself from the memorable movie model and magically profit from the theatre’s tough thrust stage.

It is a musical that revolves across the feminine characters and Chichester has a really effective solid who every seize the possibility to thrill us within the supply of their songs. The opening sequence within the nunnery with “Maria” and “My Favorite Issues” is a splendidly evocative and joyous celebration led by an impressive Mom Abbess, Janice Kelly, an excellent set of supporting nuns together with Wendy Ferguson, Julia Nagle and Laura Chia and a superb Gina Beck returning to the Chichester stage because the charmingly harmless Maria. They collectively delightfully create a powerful sense of each their strict chosen life-style but in addition the caring human and humour facet beneath the wimples. As all the time, the closing Act 1, “Climb Each Mountain” supplies an emotionally charged spotlight with Kelly’s wealthy operatic tones filling the auditorium.

The choreography by Lizzie Gee is splendidly contemporary and exact, particularly with the Von Trapp youngsters led by Liesl (Lauren Conroy). The routine with Rolf (Dylan Mason) across the fountain in “Sixteen Occurring Seventeen” is romantically candy filling the stage with the sense of younger love that’s so important to the ultimate scenes within the Nunnery. The six different youngsters are all completely solid (though their ages don’t fairly match their heights within the line up!) and convey joyous delight to their songs “The Lonely Goatherd”, “So Lengthy, Farewell” and the highly effective and emotional reprise of “The Sound of Music “ with the Captain (Edward Harrison). The transitions of acceptance of Maria by the nuns, then the youngsters and eventually the Captain are fantastically and authentically performed as every soften below her glowing and fascinating persona.

There are sturdy supporting performances too from Penelope Woodman as Frau Schmidt, William Ilkley and Franz, Emma Williams as Elsa Schraeder and Ako Williams as Max Detweiler every including their very own nuances and impression to the connection between the Captain and Maria and displaying the tensions created by love and the German invasion. Their behaviour and responses really feel actual by way of the songs “How can love survive?” and “No Solution to cease it” doesn’t fairly resonate as strongly as the opposite tunes and fade rapidly from the reminiscence. Although some could regard the musical as overly sentimental, this can be a musical that has all the time grabbed me musically and emotionally because it builds to a dramatic and highly effective conclusion in every act. The ultimate songs “Edelweiss”, “So Lengthy, Farewell” and “Climb each mountain” from the stage of the Pageant, so filled with patriotism, disappointment and hope are as sturdy a end to a present as in any musical over the next sixty years.

It is a title that deserves to run and run and a manufacturing that’s definitely ok to switch to the West Finish if the rights permit. It exhibits that you just don’t must all the time reinvent basic exhibits to nonetheless make them related and pleasant for a Twenty first-century viewers, when they’re this good and solid properly, they nonetheless interact, delight and thrill their audiences.

Evaluation by Nick Wayne 

Ranking: ★★★★

Seat: Row Okay, Stalls | Worth of Ticket: £47