She sent Maria into the “real world” as governess to Capt. We all moved into the Reverend Mother Abbess’ (Leeza Yorke) pious office, and it was there that Mother sang favorites, “Maria” and “My Favorite Things.” The wise Mother Abbess reminded us that this free-spirited postulant wasn’t yet ready to become a nun. When she began singing about the hills that she loved so much, the lyrics were clearer than they had ever been, and her voice filled our world with her rich, vibrant vocals as she sang out resplendently. No, she wasn’t Miss Andrews, but I had forgotten all about her by then because this young girl singing on the mountaintop was our beautiful Maria. As viewers, we were all escorted to a hilly part of the grounds that mimicked a mountainside, where a lovely young girl began singing all alone, and it was her – it was Maria (Shayanne Ortiz). As they sang the “Preludium,” “Morning Hymn,” and “Alleluia,” it was as though heaven had opened up and brought angels in to shut the rest of the world away.įor that evening, it was simply the sound of birds chirping in the trees, the softness of a fading sunset, a heartfelt story, and a peek into the souls of these characters that we only thought we knew so well. They led us on an unforgettable journey that had only just begun. We were suddenly transported back in time and assembled in The Nonnberg Abbey. With lovely angelic statues and quiet, ethereal surroundings, we, the audience, realized that we were no longer in the courtyard. Let’s face it – what is The Sound of Music without Julie Andrews? Nearly everyone knows the story, and the songs are classics, so why was this musical on Electric Company Theatre’s radar?įrom the moment the audience gathered in the Circle Center Courtyard, I knew it was different, and I knew I was in the midst of something very special. I run, never walk, to the Electric Company’s productions because of this theater group’s unrivaled creativity, artistry, and outstanding ways of telling a story, but when I heard that this production was to be The Sound of Music, I wrinkled my nose and wondered what they could possibly do to make this antiquated old warhorse anything other than what it was… old-fashioned. The innovative Electric Company Theatre, Muckenthaler Cultural Center’s Resident Theater Group, has given gossamer-like wings to the revival of the well-known musical, The Sound of Music, and this production soars well into the heavens by way of the Muck’s (as it is affectionally called) mansion and spectacular grounds.

The Muckenthaler Cultural Center 1201 West Malvern Ave, Fullerton

And then there were none emily brent