User reviews

On Thursday night, NBC attempted to do a challenging task by putting one of the most beloved musicals of all time and adapting it into a stage production. For the most part, NBC did it well and it turned into a very entertaining adaptation of the classic Rodger's and Hammerstein's musical, The Sound of Music.

The production, done completely like a Broadway play with stage sets, worked well, keeping the mood of the scenes just good enough and displaying the settings nicely. The songs: Yeah, they were all there, and a few others that were not in the classic Julie Andrews movie, but rather are in the original Broadway production. Those songs would be "How Can Love Survive" and "No Way To Stop It", and they were a welcome addition indeed.

Besides putting on a Broadway television type show, NBC also decided to take another chance by giving the lead role of the musical of Maria to none other than country superstar Carrie Underwood. Underwood, who won American Idol many years ago has made herself into a big name and had a chance to do something that she rarely has ever done, and that's act. Did it work? Well... a little bit. Her singing was solid. I was wondering if her country sound might come into her voice, and it didn't. Her acting though, was just average. Now, we knew coming into watching this that she would not be a great actress. After all, as I said, she did not have much experience, but for that I do appreciate her stepping into a different medium. As a singer though, she did a good enough job, and for a musical, what else do you really want?

The other lead of the movie, Captain Von Trapp, was played by Stephen Moyer. Moyer, like Underwood was solid in the role, but did not impress me the way I had hoped with his singing. What did impress me however was the supporting cast of this adaptation. The Von Trapp children all were good and as sweet as ever. The Baroness, played by Laura Benanti and Max Detweiler, played by Christian Borle were both excellent and had wonderful chemistry together whenever they were put on stage at the same time. And the Mother Abbess, played by Audra McDonald was tremendous, nailing her big song, Climb Every Mountain with every note and was a performance that would have brought a house to his feet.

Now, was it as good as the original movie? No. But, all in all, despite its flaws and perhaps somewhat poor casting choices, this NBC adaptation was a good watch, and I applaud NBC for putting it on for all of us to see for an evening. It was interesting to not only see some of the differences from the movie that I had grown up watching, but to also see a Broadway stage production of a musical that I rarely see period.

Rating: 7/10

I have been reading the other postings with great interest and what I have taken from the collective comments is the lack of understanding that this admirable (Yes, Ms. Underwood needs more acting lessons, though her singing was a pure enjoyable Broadway belt) television broadcast is closely based on the original 1959 stage version written by Lindsey and Crouse (book) and Rodgers and Hammerstein (score) for Mary Martin, with Theodore Bikel co-starring as the Captain, a fact that all of the publicity for this TV version has stated.

One poster on this thread stated he was sorry the TV got the scenes out of order; I beg to differ. The film got the scenes out of order. It was the film version that substituted "My Favorite Things" for "The Lonely Goatherd" in the storm scene, regulating the latter song to some strange interpolated puppet sequence and depriving the Mother Abbess of her part in a duet with Maria.

This version didn't add the two songs for the Elsa and Max. It was the film version that deleted them from the score while adding "Confidence in Me", a 'travelling' song that was justified in a cinematic sense but not needed in the stage version, as the TV broadcast clearly vindicated.

In fact, speaking of the songs, I was sorry to see that one mediocre song ("Something Good") was substituted for another mediocre song ("An Ordinary Couple"). At least that deleted song had a lyric by Hammerstein; Rodgers himself wrote the lyric to "Something Good".

"The Sound of Music" isn't a great show, but it is an audience favorite. It shared the Tony Award for Best Musical with "Fiorello!" and Ms. Martin beat out the likes of Ethel Merman for Best Actress in a Musical. The TV version was an honorable attempt (and broadcast live was a great idea--anyone else notice how the train in the Baroness's dress was stepped on by another actor?). I hope network television experiments further with this idea (though keeping the commercials down might be a good idea--a bunch at the beginning, a clump in the middle, and another cluster at the end would keep the audiences involved.). So, congrats to all involved. Keep singing.

Yes, I'm a "Sound of Music" geek. I absolutely love this musical, and I'm so glad I caught the live version on NBC. The actors did a fantastic job with their performances. There were no major mistakes, and only one very tiny mistake with Carrie Underwood who slipped a little with her footing in the first scene.

The only real flaw with this was the arrangement of the scenes. It varied from the movie a great deal sometimes, which was disappointing. I can normally recite this musical almost word for word, so not being able to follow its normal flow had me a bit frustrated. I felt that certain scenes were crucial to the original story, and shouldn't be changed.

Overall, I rate this one a 7/10 stars. Very well done!

What might have worked as a Branson stage show for the elderly "wholesome" crowd...or a cruise ship entertainment...just doesn't cut it as a network TV broadcast. It's definitely amateur night at NBC, with an American Idol winner belting and yodeling her little old heart out, and some of the clumsiest camera work and ugliest sets we've seen in a long time. But it's good to know that in 1930s Austria, a hotbed of racial tolerance, a black nun could be mother superior. (If this a color-blind cast, why not some black Nazis, too, and some Asian kids in the Von Trapp family? Nobody at NBC seemed to be able to think their way through anything having to do with this unfortunate production.)

I've read most of the reviews coming out and am surprised: why, and how, do you compare a live performance on television to a carefully filmed and edited movie? I don't think you can, nor do I think it's fair. Be closer to compare this to the live Broadway production of The Sound of Music with Mary Martin, but that ran for many performances, allowing ample time to work out the rough edges.

I thought it was fantastic. I haven't seen a live production on TV like this in decades. Kudos to everyone who produced it, I thought Carrie Underwood was fantastic, if slightly out of breath early in the movie from the hectic costume changes and dance/singing routines. Mother Superior was fabulous in both acting and singing. I love the sets. I'd like to see a WHOLE lot more TV like this.

It is hard not to compare but there is no comparison between the original movie and this. A decent job by all considering it is a live performance but that is as far as it goes. My biggest worry was, would anyone be able to do justice to "Climb every mountain". Audra McDonald did a fantastic job. A big song and a big voice. It was so far, the only really great moment of the show. There were a lot of awkward moments in the show but the singing has been for the most part good. It is almost impossible to remake a classic. Especially one as beloved as the Sound of Music. As much as I love Carrie, no one will ever have the presence of Julie Andrews. Talk about a tough act to follow.

Many posters here have done an adequate job of reviewing all the facets of NBC's ambitious December 5th production of "The Sound of Music;" I'd like therefore to focus on only one. Several trade and daily newspapers have pointed out the deficiencies of Miss Underwood's acting. I cannot quibble with the fact that it was not great, but I thought her performance was magnificent for a first effort, and her pipes were perfectly up to the task.

I enjoyed this musical very much, and even found myself shedding a few tears here and there. What I think we have to understand is that it's quite likely that it could not have been staged at all without Carrie Underwood's participation. It takes that much star power to get the backing for a venture of this magnitude. If not she, then who?

So I'd beg others to give her well-earned plaudits for putting herself on the line in a LIVE performance like this. It must have been terrifying for someone who'd never done it before in her life. It would also be wise to remember that if this were a production prepared for the NY stage, it would have opened in Hartford or somewhere like that to get the kinks worked out before the curtain ever went up on Broadway. In this instance, though, there was NO way to polish it further -- i.e., THIS was opening night, and as such, I think it was a magnificent effort. For anyone who'd care to compare this to the movie version, just try to imagine how much better each and every scene could be with the benefit of the ten or twenty takes and months of editing that the Robert Wise/Julie Andrews version received.

Rather than decry Carrie Underwood's efforts, I'd like to propose that we may have been privileged to see a new stage-musical star being born. I simply cannot give her enough credit for her monumental first effort in this medium. She'll get better, and she may become great.

You GO, Carrie Underwood!

First, kudos for creating a live television presentation.

Please please please... more. I and I know many would flock to this kind of live performance.

Next, too easy to do the comparison thing. But unavoidable... so must qualify this by declaring the obvious intimacy of film versus the live TV/stage adaptation. And there it is... intimacy of film. One is hard pressed to not draw those comparisons in spite of this.

So let's... first Ms Underwood. Most excellent to give this a go. She is also not an actress. It was obvious. There is no substitute for having worked on stage, as an actress. There was a distinct lack of depth to the character. And the vocal performance that is markedly different from people with great voices as Ms Underwood has, and seasoned stage actors and actresses as for instance Ms MacDonald has. Ms Underwood hit her marks. And her voice is superb. But the performance lacked that *it* thing. If she would commit to doing more stage work, her depth would grow. As it was, it was a thin performance.

All the other performances were serviceable, and some good. Or as in Ms Audra McDonald, she was superb. Ms McDonald of course is a trained stage actress, and it screams so.

The production quality not the least of which was the musical production was top shelf. And choreography. Well done here.

There was one huge mistake that overtook the entire production however. It must be pointed out. The lack of a live audience was a huge misstep. The 1965 version had the huge advantage of the intimacy of film. In choosing to do a live TV version, what would have bridged that difference would have been to honor what live stage productions have... and that is a living breathing audience. The energy, the ambiance, everything would have been greatly influenced by this. Not having it in my opinion crippled the experience. If there is a future attempt at a live TV production of anything.... do not make this same mistake. You must must must have the energy that a live audience brings to a production. This would have without question made a significant difference in this current production. Am not sure why there was a choice NOT to have a live audience....

Still, that this happened at all is big. Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeze take on another one, and another one. As the ratings would show, this art, this craft, is alive and quite well. I give mega props for taking this on and hopefully the learning experience will go into future productions...

This should NEVER have been done! It's nowhere near the original stage musical and same applies to the original film either. Some of the acting/singing is overdone and with others it's stiff and wooden. Doing it live was admirable, but it introduced issues with having lines rushed to get to commercial breaks which are notoriously ruthless in their timing, the result being pacing disruption and less than desirable acting performances adjusting timing. Just as bad is the casting which was UN-BE-LIEVABLE. You want me to swallow that in mid-1930's Austria, in midst of it being taken over by Nazis from Germany via an assassination of their Prime Minister, an influx of German SA Brownshirt thugs (SA = Sturmabteilung), plus a society with a significant number of anti-semitic and racially bigoted people, that there would be a black mother superior in a convent there? And you would want me to believe the captain would have an Hispanic child, in what was very much then and is still pretty much an ethnically and culturally monolithic country? GET REAL! Worst yet, it downplays what the Nazis actually did to Austria, from within and without, in the Anschluss. In the effort to make beautiful music, which it does not do very well, it loses the entire underlying theme that was captured by the stage and film musicals . . . one courageous man's . . . an Austrian Navy Captain of wealth, and his family's stand against the Anschluss, and their willingness to give up everything rather than be a part of it.

This abysmal TV "remake" wasn't Live! it was DEAD! ON ARRIVAL! When will the cable and broadcast TV networks ever learn NOT to attempt remakes of audience revered and critically acclaimed films? Inevitably they're an Epic FAIL and this one was no different. Why must they plagiarize something already done, and worse yet, something that was done exceptionally well? Can they NOT come up with something creatively original? Is their IQ that low? Do they have that much arrogance, disdain and disrespect for TV viewing audiences to think our IQ that low -- that we're brain dead and will accept drivel?

So viewers are aware, this is not a remake of the 1965 movie. This is a television production of the Broadway show.

This was old-fashioned TV. In the 1950s, much television was broadcast live, and performances of musicals were frequent. This was essentially a televised stage performance, with simple sets and no special effects. The company performed the 1959 Broadway version of "The Sound of Music," with one exception: the song "An Ordinary Couple" from the original production was removed and replaced with "Something Good," which was written for the 1965 film version.

Viewers unfamiliar with the stage version might not recognize two other songs from the Broadway show not included in the 1965 film (but included in this production), "No Way to Stop It" and "How Can Love Survive." The latter song is one of the most well-crafted lyrics of Oscar Hammerstein II.

The cast did a very good job, but there is no question that it could have been better with a prerecorded format instead of performing live for the sake of novelty.

If television broadcast more musicals in this format, it would be most welcome.

What a feel good live performance this was to watch, the music numbers, the acotrs and the stages were great and it was just such a joy to watch, I was surprised to see Carrie underwood take on the role of miss maria and im happy she did. She was a breath of fresh air with great pipes as always and her stage precence with her acting I think she was great there to. We get a lenghy number at the start at the nun convent before we get into the home of the vontraps and meet the kids, all again great performances from the young cast and stephen moyer I was happy to see can sing aswell. The story was good and overall I enjoyed this live performance.

This production missed the mark on every level. The sound was atrocious (the singers sounded like they were singing through tin cans, while the orchestra was at full volume - criminal for a musical). The story changes were gratuitous, and removed much of the drama. The smallest girl couldn't finish a line of singing (kept fading out). Rolf was laughably old (looked 40, not 17). They changed the order of some of the songs, which caused them to not make story sense. Captain Von Trapp's voice was thoroughly average (Edelweiss sounded like an afterthought).

Given the hype, Carrie Underwood was the biggest disappointment - while she has a good voice, it doesn't have the pure, clear quality that makes you believe Maria's innocence, and she simply is incapable of acting (it sounded like she was reading her spoken lines off cue cards, and she was often looking in the wrong direction). My wife and I were very disappointed.

I thought this was pretty darned good. My son was an assistant director for this play at his high school, so the differences between the stage play and the movie production were obvious to me. To criticize this because of changes from the Julie Andrews version is unfair. The very task of putting a live performance on television has been debated so much and I feel that to never try anything new is preposterous. While there were a few flubs and trips, this whole thing came off remarkably well. Carrie Undrwood is one of the most talented pop singers of our time (or any, for that matter) and delivers well. The supporting cast is quite wonderful, filled with Broadway heavyweights. Underwood's acting is a bit stiff, but for the most part it is adequate. I can't think of a song that wasn't delivered by the cast in any but a highly professional way. Remember, when the movie came out, there were die-hard Mary Martin fans who were surprised by the additionally songs and the deleting of some of their favorites. I don't know if we need live television with all the advances in video performance, but I would not hesitate to watch this. One hope is that on the DVD version, they are able to remove that overriding hum.

This remake was so awful!! With all due respect to Miss Underwood, she cannot even come close to the charisma and charm that Julie Andrews gave that role. Someone forgot to tell the director of this abortion that it is supposed to be set during World War 2 and I don't think there was a black mother superior. I also doubt that the youngest child was Hispanic....unless the Captain was on shore leave in Cabo! Political correctness crept in and ruined yet another movie! Not a single shred of anything worthy of the title exists in this movie! Avoid this complete waste of misguided efforts to bring holiday cheer to anyone!

I have to be honest here, I originally had no intention of watching this special, but when I found out it would be performed live, as they used to do in decades past, it piqued my curiosity. I also happened to turn on the TV just about the time it started, so decided to check it out.

In no way was I expecting it to compare to the 1965 film. This was obviously supposed to be more akin to the stage production. Having said that, I was far more impressed than I anticipated. The music was fantastic and I loved the live acting quality to it. I only have a couple criticisms.

I understand that Carrie Underwood was probably selected because they wanted to get a name to draw in viewers. Her singing was actually quite good, but her acting was sub-par, especially to the rest of the cast. I understand she is not an actress, so I give her kudos for putting herself on the line.

As for the rest of the cast, I was happy that they decided to use mostly unknown actors, who appeared to be trained for stage productions. It definitely added to the credibility of the show. I thought the kids were all great, except Gretel, who was definitely a star in the film version. This one did not seem especially gifted in acting or singing and even lacked charisma. I wondered if she might be the daughter of a producer or something. That was a shame because its another stand out role that suffered.

I was pretty pleased with everything else. The sets were gorgeous! The transitions were seamless. The music overall was very fun and enjoyable, hearing those great Rogers & Hammerstein songs never gets old! Was also nice that they included some songs that were not in the film version. I definitely don't feel I wasted my evening when there is so much other rubbish on TV. I hope people were open-minded and supportive, so perhaps we'll see another live musical special next year!

Maria captured my attention the moment she arrives in the atrium and holds it for the entire movie. She was perfect on the first dance with the Captain, she was rightly guarded after hearing the Captain was falling for her (and she for him), and she was sublime when she tells the Captain "your decision is my decision" regarding escape from Nazis. She would have to be some professional stage actress from UK with a slight Bristish account, and what a pleasant surprise, Carrie Underwood ! All the mean-spirit critics who gave less than scintillating respone to Underwood, have we watched the same movie?

Now the rest of the movie was not perfect. The scene of Listl and Rauf I remember took place under moon light in a green house, floated softly like a dream scape in the original movie. In this movie they used the same mountain background, no green house. What a disappointment! The Captain needed more girth. When he first appears I thought he was the butler. Rauf, the budding nazi boy should have short blond hair but in this version he has greased black hair. The children however were flawless, each one has own personality. The other high point of the movie in the Abby where the Rev mother councils Maria to go find her life could have been more astounding. The song "Climb Every Mountain" wasn't sung as well as it should have been.

Overall this is great family entertainment for a Christmas weekend and guys Carrie Underwood was great!

If I could have gotten over the fact that Carrie Underwood looked like the Milk Maid from the hot cocoa packages with a baby bump (3 sizes too big), they may have been able to squeak by. Why put a child in to do a woman's job? You can't expect someone who has never acted before to go up against Julie Andrews. The head bobbing thing and cheesy smiles from the Von Trapp family kids was annoying and distracting. It reminded me of those kids' videos from the 1980's with a purple dinosaur dancing around. The fact that the Captain and Carrie had absolutely no chemistry whatsoever was downright scary. I was actually hoping he would run off with the Baroness(either that or that the Nazis would show up.) I will give them the Mother Superior's touching version of "Climb Every Mountain" but her approach to Maria with her preachy demeanor and "in your face" eye glares was distracting. The nun costumes looked like a ridiculous attempt to copy the Flying Nun. I'm still going with a perfect waste of 2 hours.

As far as I know this is a live television adaptation of the original stage musical and NOT the film version. I know a lot would not agree with how the show was made but who's to blame? The magnificent voices of the cast brings back memories on how the Von Trapp family became a sensation. Carrie may not have had the best of acting abilities but when she starts to sing the chemistry that defines her as Maria starts to appear. I don't think it would be fair to compare her with Julie Andrews but I do believe that she did better than any other Broadway actresses who played Maria on-stage.

I can only say to myself that they did cast the right people for a television show. To play on-stage would be a different thing.

Kudos to Carrie Underwood.

Carrie Underwood does a very credible job as Maria, and the kids are all pretty good. Stephen Moyer is also pretty good as the captain.

Keeping in mind this was a live production and will be released on DVD/Bluray, I think all the cast members are to be commended. All in all, this version is well worth your time (and money, if you buy a disk.)

The story was true to the movie, and the sets were very nicely built and displayed. This was quite a production- hard to believe the studio would take a risk like this, but it really paid off. We will have a Bluray as soon as they are available.

The only down side to the TSOM 2013 is the complete lack of class shown by some of the 1965 version cast members. Their tweets and comments about Underwood after the live telecast were out of line and unnecessary, and demonstrated a marked lack of class. That is surprising coming from people of their age, and for me, they taint my happy memories of each. As a result, I will archive the 1965 version and watch Carrie Underwood instead- TSOM 2013 will be the version seen by my children. It is a worthy successor.