Topic: The Sound of Music Live!

[AshKetchum]

From the L.A. Times:

NBC Plans Live Broadcast of The Sound of Music

Network television will soon be live with the sound of music.

NBC announced Friday that it will partner with "Smash" producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron for a live TV broadcast of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II's "The Sound of Music."

"There used to be a tradition of broadcasting musicals live back in the 1950s, and we're thrilled to do it once again," NBC Entertainment Chairman Robert Greenblatt said in a release.

Producers said they have no plans to remake the 1965 Oscar-winning film starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer. "That would be artistic blasphemy," Zadan said.

Instead they will re-create the 1959 stage musical as what they call a "classic television event" combined with the "spontaneity of a live performance."

"All of the actors will be singing live; there will be no lip-synching to recordings," Zadan added.

The broadcast will feature classic songs including “The Sound of Music,” “Do-Re-Mi” and “My Favorite Things,” along with a few less familiar tunes from the Broadway version.

Casting will begin immediately and an air date will be announced in coming weeks.

Zadan and Meron are seasoned Broadway vets: The duo produced the film versions of "Chicago" and "Hairspray," and have earned 12 Tony nominations between them,  most recently for "Promises, Promises" and "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying."

It's a nice attempt, and good luck to them; many are still wondering why the lackluster Smash was renewed, as it kept drowning in the ratings week after week. But The Sound of Music is a classic, and recreating the stage version could draw in the viewers.

[Mr. Hankey]

Carrie Underwood to Headline NBC's Live Sound of Music Remake: Genius or Sacrilege?
BY MICHAEL SLEZAK
 
How do you solve a problem like casting the role of Maria von Trapp in your live televised version of The Sound of Music? If you’re NBC, you ink a deal with American Idol Season 4 champ-turned-country music megastar Carrie Underwood.

Indeed, the “Before He Cheats” singer and five-time Grammy winner will headline the latest take on the Rodgers and Hammerstein Broadway musical that will be produced by Craig Zadan and Neil Meron (Smash, Chicago).

The production is slated to air during the 2013 holiday season.

“We’re thrilled to be presenting the Broadway version of The Sound of Music live,” said Zadan and Meron, in a release. “And having Carrie Underwood as the star brings it to a new generation who will fall in love with it for the first time, as many millions of people already have. It’s a particular joy to us as producers to see this amazing artist stretch into new territory with this classic musical.”

The Sound of Music, set in pre-World War II Austria, is based on the true story of Maria von Trapp, an aspiring nun who takes a job as governess for the seven children of widower Captain von Trapp. The duo begins to fall in love with each other against the backdrop of the rise of Nazi Germany.

The Broadway version of The Sound of Music premiered in 1959, winning the Tony Award for Best Musical. The 1965 big-screen version won the Best Picture Oscar.

http://tvline.com/2012/11/30/carrie-underwood-sound-of-music-nbc/

[AshKetchum]

Now that is truly a WTF casting call. 

Who's Captain Von Trapp?  Tim McGraw? 

[Mr. Hankey]

Now that is truly a WTF casting call. 

When I posted this same article on Facebook, my only comment was also... WTF? LOL

[deweyfinn]

Now that is truly a WTF casting call. 

Who's Captain Von Trapp?  Tim McGraw? 

Can Carrie and Tim be sporting Germanic accents?

The Sound Of Music can't be The Sound Of Music without the Alpine setting and historical backstory.

[AshKetchum]

Poster of the batsh!t-crazy version of The Sound of Music:



Country singer as Maria, check (Carrie Underwood); Vampire as Georg von Trapp, check (Stephen Moyer); African-American Mother Abbess, check (Audra McDonald).

Other cast members announced were Laura Benanti as Elsa Schrader, and Christian Borle as Max Detweiler...at least these two (plus McDonald) are veteran Broadway performers, which should elevate this production somewhat, we'll see...

I was expecting Danny McBride as Max Detweiler and Kristin Bauer van Straten as the Baroness though, LOL. Add that creepy girl from Orphan (Isabelle Fuhrman) as one of the kids, plus maybe Raven-Symoné as a sassy nun. 

[halvert]

Couldn't get someone with more star power than the vampire from true blood? Kahit dun, mas sikat pa si skarsgard  kesa sa kanya.

[Mr. Hankey]

I am SO watching this.

Best case scenario: It'll shock everyone and be good.

Worst case scenario: It will be so bad it'll be hilarious to watch.

Wait... I'm not sure which of those two scenarios would be the best or the worst.

[deweyfinn]

Poster of the batsh!t-crazy version of The Sound of Music:



Country singer as Maria, check (Carrie Underwood); Vampire as Georg von Trapp, check (Stephen Moyer); African-American Mother Abbess, check (Audra McDonald).

Isn't it still supposed to be set in WWII Austria?  Holy Sister Act, Batman?  If there was an African-American Mother Superior at that time, sigurado todasin siya ng mga Nazis!!!

[Klaus Weasley]

Carrie Underwood as Maria is of course laughable.

HOWEVER, I am interested in listening to Audra McDonald's version of "Climb Ev'ry Mountain".

[AshKetchum]

This airs tomorrow night (December 5) on NBC.

Those who have Spotify accounts can listen to the soundtrack here:
http://open.spotify.com/album/3QgJmtu3UjQHo9mDAm1I1W

edit: someone from YouTube is posting tracks there--I listened to The Lonely Goatherd, and well, it's not really bad at all, it's actually good! (if a bit slower)...Carrie Underwood nailed it somehow. 

[Mr. Hankey]

I watched The Making of The Sound of Music Live last week, and I was quite surprised at how good she sounded during the rehearsals.

[Mr. Hankey]

The singing was good, the acting from the two leads was bad, but we had fun watching it.

I was laughing at all the idiots tweeting that NBC changed things and messed up the order of the songs. No, it's the movie that messed up the order of the songs. This is how this always plays on stage.

It was a huge ratings success, too: http://insidetv.ew.com/2013/12/06/sound-of-music-ratings/

[brainwashed]

The singing was good. I ended up listening to it more than watching it.

[AshKetchum]

Looks like NBC's big gamble paid off--those are some truly impressive numbers, at one point even eclipsing ratings for The Big Bang Theory. Carrie Underwood's acting got a lot of flak; then again, she's not really an actress, but most importantly, she really nailed the singing, which is all that matters.

I was skeptical at first, but my doubts turned around when I heard her recorded version of The Lonely Goatherd, which I think is the supreme test for anyone playing Maria Von Trapp, LOL

[Mr. Hankey]

I had no idea where to post this, so... 



Von Trapp children Manila, 1980. 

(From L-R) Menchu Lauchengco (17), Raymond Lauchengco (14), Riza Hontiveros (14), Javier Arriaga (12), Monique Wilson (10), Lea Salonga (9), Angela Adams (5).

[jjohnc]

I had no idea where to post this, so... 



Von Trapp children Manila, 1980. 

(From L-R) Menchu Lauchengco (17), Raymond Lauchengco (14), Riza Hontiveros (14), Javier Arriaga (12), Monique Wilson (10), Lea Salonga (9), Angela Adams (5).

Riza Hontiveros Senator ba sya ngayon? Like

[edwn1220]

^ No, she's not. She used to be an Akbayan Partylist representative, ran in the 2010/13 senatorial elections but lost in both.