"The foothills of the Pennines are alive with the sound of..." St. Gabriel's ADMS's production of the perennial family favourite, 'The Sound Of Music'. This week, Rochdale's bijou Curtain Theatre plays host to this fabulous show, presenting the perfect community production by a local dedicated amateur company, where a small but highly dedicated team put on the best show they are able to do with the stage / technical etc limitations to hand. I have to admit the stage was much deeper than I had remembered and the set for the rear of the Von Trapp house leading down to the lake with the mountains beyond was impressive.
Surely I do not need to give anyone a resume of the storyline? So let's just get straight down to praising the company for their cumulative energy, dedication, enthusiasm and work ethic for bringing about the production that they did. Directed by Sarah Croke (who also took on the delightful role of Elsa Schräder) the characters were allowed to 'bloom and grow' as they went along, and we were able to follow them on their journey with ease. I am uncertain that the original newsreel footage of the Anschluss parade in Villach added anything, but it didn't distract too much. However, as lovely as the two Austrian flags were during the concert scene, they were being shown too late.. they should have been shown much earlier, and during the concert we should have had the Reichsflagge (ie.. the Red flag with the "black spider"). Understandably there were quite a few hiatuses whilst scenery and / or costumes had to be changed, but hopefully as the run progresses, these will get shorter and shorter.
The Musical Direction was by Erin Croke, and as much as I understand the need for using backing tracks (both the stage restrictions and obviously budget make these a necessary evil) the choice of tracks meant that many of the songs the company were tasked in singing started without any accompaniment at all, and so the cast were obviously struggling with notes, and pitch, harmonies, and even sometimes tempo, until the backing track kicked in.
Michaela Coward and Neil Teggan gave solid performances of Maria Von Trapp and Captain Von Trapp respectively, supported by a stalwart team of seasoned players. However, as we all know, this show belongs to the children, and the company had two teams alternating performances throughout the run. This evening I was privileged to watch TEAM SALZBURG. Jessica Taylor was both demure and confident in her role as the eldest of the children, she is sixteen going on seventeen, and confused about her first love (Rolf - played quite rightly, stolidly by Josh Ingham) and she pitched her character nicely. Then came Joseph Broderick (Friedrich), Libby Sutton (Louisa), Keavy Coward (Brigitta), Ted McCarthy (Kurt), Luisa O'Gorman (Marta), and Georgia Appleton (Gretl), all showing talent and insight, making a lovely ensemble together, each with their different characteristics. Young Appleton melting hearts with, "I've got a sore finger!".
A feel-good piece of family entertainment in the heart of Rochdale over the Half Term holiday.... what's not to like, for "there's no way to stop it"...!
Reviewer - Alastair Zyggu
On - 29.10.25
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