NORTHERN KENTUCKY’S LARGEST PERFORMING ARTS COMPANIES COMBINE FORCES FOR UNIQUE PRESENTATION OF THE WORLD’S FAVORITE MUSICAL
Bottom to top: Xela Keith-Chirch, Olivia Bayer, Anna Dudley (r) & Abigail Paschke (l), Rachel Zimmerman (r) & Seth Mundy (l), Elijah Prather & Kathryn Miller. Photo by Matt Steffen.
COVINGTON, KY- The Carnegie proudly continues its 2013-14 Theatre Series with a lightly staged production of the beloved Rodgers & Hammertstein musical THE SOUND OF MUSIC, playing weekends January 17 – 26, 2014 at The Carnegie in Covington, KY and co-produced with the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra. Musicians from that ensemble share the stage with a sterling cast of professional musical theatre and opera performers under the direction of Brian Robertson and the baton of maestro James R. Cassidy. Tickets are $19 – $28 and are available online at www.thecarnegie.com or by calling The Carnegie Box Office at (859) 957-1940 (open Tu – Fr, noon – 5pm).
What does “lightly staged” mean? Audiences will see a small orchestra on stage, costumes, evocative lighting, modest scenic design and a small company of performers. They will not see scripts in-hand, a multitude of props, scenic or costume changes or extensive choreography.
THE SOUND OF MUSIC is sponsored by Sally and Sandy Thompson.
Show Synopsis
Nestled in the majestic hills of Austria, under the looming shadow of Nazi Germany, free-spirited Maria leaves the abbey to serve as nanny to the motherless children of the austere Captain von Trapp. With music and boundless love, Maria restores joy to the children’s home and finds unexpected feelings for their father, whose heart has rekindled with “the sound of music.”
The Hills (of Kentucky) Are Alive: The Carnegie and Kentucky Symphony Orchestra
With a treasure trove of songs including “My Favorite Things,” “Do-Re-Mi,” “So Long, Farewell,” “Sixteen Going On Seventeen” “Climb Ev’ry Mountain” and “Edelweiss,” the triumphant score of THE SOUND OF MUSIC begs for a live, professional orchestra, making it an ideal collaborative platform for The Carnegie and Kentucky Symphony Orchestra (KSO). The two largest performing arts companies in Northern Kentucky, The Carnegie and KSO last collaborated on a successful production of OLIVER! in 2009, and have worked together on numerous performances. Partnership is central to the work of both organizations, according KSO Music Director James R. Cassidy.
“Working with your neighbor to create an event that will be memorable for many represents an opportunity that doesn’t come along every day,” says Cassidy. “The Carnegie has established a track record of assembling fabulous talent on their historic stage and the KSO is thrilled to bring its musicians to join them for this Rodgers and Hammerstein family classic. Besides, getting together to create something special is what good friends and colleagues do.”
Cassidy works for the first time with stage director Brian Robertson, who returns to The Carnegie following his award-winning staging of CAMELOT during the past season. A faculty member in the Department of Theatre and Dance at Northern Kentucky University, Robertson has directed locally with companies including the Cincinnati Opera (A FLOWERING TREE), Know Theatre and Ensemble Theatre, and around the country, including Des Moines Metro Opera, Opera North and University of Kentucky.
THE SOUND OF MUSIC: The World’s Most Beloved Musical
As cherished and timeless as THE SOUND OF MUSIC is, it’s hard to believe that this musical play started just as any other, in this case as a pet project pitch by actress Mary Martin (PETER PAN, I DO! I DO!) to the already legendary team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. THE SOUND OF MUSIC would open in Broadway’s Lunt-Fontanne Theatre in 1959 and catapult to instant success, garnering seven Tony Award wins and a run of 1,443 performances. A subsequent national tour starring Florence Henderson (FANNY, OKLAHOMA!) would run for more than two years, and the London production would run for over six years, still the longest-tenured American production in West End history.
Remarkably successful though the stage production was, it would be the silver screen that would truly launch THE SOUND OF MUSIC to international ubiquity. Starring the incomparable Julie Andrews (Mary Poppins, CAMELOT, MY FAIR LADY) alongside Christopher Plummer (Up, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), the film received five Academy Awards and became the most successful movie musical in history.
The Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization has licensed more than 17,500 productions of THE SOUND OF MUSIC worldwide.
Singing on the Shoulders of Giants: Playing Maria Von Trapp
On December 5, 2013, NBC will present a live television production of THE SOUND OF MUSIC, starring country music singer Carrie Underwood. Though not a traditional musical theatre actor, Underwood nonetheless follows in a long line of famous performers who have played the role of Maria Von Trapp, including Mary Martin, Julie Andrews, Florence Henderson and Marie Osmond.
Well aware of this lineage and honored to tackle the iconic role in The Carnegie’s production is opera and musical theatre actress Abigail Paschke. A master’s graduate of the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, now living on the east coast, Paschke has made a career performing across the country with Virginia Opera, Kentucky Opera, Opera Saratoga, Sarasota Opera, and recently at Des Moines Metro Opera, where she met SOUND OF MUSIC director Brian Robertson. She’s had a wealth of experience with the show, but never in the role of Maria.
“Believe it or not,“ explains Paschke, “I am fortunate enough to have played four out of the five Von Trapp family girls, so as one can imagine, THE SOUND OF MUSIC is very near and dear to my heart. It is an absolute dream come true to have been given the challenge of tackling the fascinating role of Maria.”
Playing opposite Paschke in the role of Captain Georg Von Trapp is another actor who knows something about theatrical lineage, Jared Joplin*. Son of Joneal Joplin, beloved in Cincinnati for a storied career which included a long tenure as Ebenezer Scrooge in Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park’s annual A CHRISTMAS CAROL, Jared Joplin has carved out an impressive career of his own, with credits at New York’s Wings Theatre and Algonquin Theatre, the MUNY and Shakespeare Company of St. Louis, and locally at Cincinnati Shakespeare Company and Playhouse in the Park.
Other notables in the cast include Maria Ventura in the role of Mother Abbess (“Climb Ev’ry Mountain”). A faculty voice teacher at Xavier University, Ventura has enjoyed an extensive international opera career which has included performances in The Netherlands Opera, Teatre Royal de la Monnaie (Brussels), The Flanders Opera (Belgium) and the Staatstheater (Germany) amid myriad stateside credits.
Paschke, Joplin and Ventura join fifteen other actors making their Carnegie Theatre Series debut with THE SOUND OF MUSIC. Northern Kentucky University standout Kathryn Miller returns to The Carnegie (CHICAGO) to play “sixteen-going-on-seventeen” Liesl Von Trapp.
*Actor appears courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association, the union of professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.
Dine Under the Dome
On Saturday, January 18 at 6pm, The Carnegie will host Dine Under the Dome, a ticketed dinner in The Carnegie Galleries, to precede the performance. Tickets are $40 per person, and include a themed gourmet dinner by Jeff Thomas Catering, wine, dessert and gratuity. Dinner tickets do not include admission to the performance.
A full menu will be available at http://www.thecarnegie.com by December 16.
Reservations may be made by calling The Carnegie Box Office at (859) 957-1940 (open Tu – Fr, noon – 5pm).
Ticketing
Tickets to The Carnegie and Kentucky Symphony Orchestra production of THE SOUND OF MUSIC are $19 – $28 and may be purchased online at http://www.thecarnegie.com or by calling The Carnegie Box Office at (859) 957-1940 (open Tu – Fr, noon – 5pm).
THE SOUND OF MUSIC will include eight performances over two weekends:
- Friday, January 17, 7:30pm
- Saturday, January 18, 2pm
- Saturday, January 18, 7:30pm
- Sunday, January 19, 3pm
- Friday, January 24, 7:30pm
- Saturday, January 25, 2pm
- Saturday, January 25, 7:30pm
- Sunday, January 26, 3pm
Single Ticket Pricing
- $28 Adults
- $25 Carnegie and Enjoy The Arts Members
- $23 Groups of 8 or More
- $19 Students
- $16 Family Tickets (Groups of four or more with at least two children)
About The Carnegie
THE CARNEGIE is a multidisciplinary arts venue serving the Northern Kentucky and Greater Cincinnati community. Over the course of the past ten years The Carnegie has “morphed” from a grassroots gallery with an education component into an all-inclusive arts organization offering professional theatre, art exhibitions showcasing the best of local and regional artists, and a comprehensive arts education program.
The Carnegie is home to The Carnegie Galleries, comprised of more than 6,000 square feet of gallery space where emerging and established artists exhibit in multiple shows throughout the year; the Eva G. Farris Education Center, which provides arts education to thousands of children, many of whom are at or below the poverty level; and the newly renovated 447-seat Otto M. Budig Theatre, which offers an affordable theatre space for local, up-and-coming and established production companies and is home to The Carnegie’s Theatre Series and Carnegie in Concert series. The Carnegie is the largest arts venue in Northern Kentucky.
The Carnegie receives ongoing operating support from ArtsWave, Kenton County Fiscal Courts, the Kentucky Arts Council, the Greater Cincinnati Foundation and the Carol Ann and Ralph V. Haile Jr. / US Bank Foundation.
About the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra
The Kentucky Symphony Orchestra was founded (as the Northern Kentucky Symphony) by its current music director, James Cassidy, to make traditional symphonic music, as well as America’s musical heritage, attractive, accessible, and affordable for residents of Northern Kentucky and Greater Cincinnati. Innovative and varied programs together with a personal connection with its audiences is what differentiates the KSO from traditional orchestras. Now in its 22nd season, the KSO’s family-friendly brand of culture and entertainment has been enjoyed free of charge by nearly 315,000 people in parks, and more than 121,000 school-age students over the past 19 years. Another 156,000 have attended 21 years of subscription series, run-out and fundraising performances. From Bach to Mahler, Satchmo to Stan Kenton, Spike Jones to the 2CELLOS, or LA BOEHEME to THE SOUND OF MUSIC, KSO audiences know they are in for a unique concert experience each time they attend.
THE SOUND OF MUSIC Cast and Production Team List
Cast
- Maria Rainer Abigail Paschke
- The Mother Abbess Maria Ventura
- Sister Berthe, Mistress of Novices Autumn West
- Sister Margaretta, Mistress of Posutlants Julia Abanto
- Sister Sophia Melanie Woodruff
- Captain Georg von Trapp Jared Joplin*
- Franz, Baron Elberfield Chris Albanese
- Frau Schmidt / Ursula Torie Pate
- Liesl Kathryn Miller
- Friedrich Eli Prather
- Louisa Rachel Zimmerman
- Kurt TBA
- Brigitta Anna Dudley
- Marta Olivia Bayer
- Gretl Xela Keith-Chirch
- Rolf Gruber Maximillian Jansen
- Elsa Schraeder Kemper Florin
- Max Detweiler Mike Hall
- Herr Zeller Nathan Neorr
- Admiral Von Schreiber Eamon Hill
*Actor appears courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association, the union of professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.
Production Team
- Director Brian Robertson
- Music Director James R. Cassidy
- Vocal Director Rebecca Childs
- Scenic & Lighting Designer Angelina Vyushkova
- Costumer Jim Stump
- Sound Designer Kevin Semancik
- Stage Manager Andi Schultes
- Assistant Stage Manager, Properties Chandler Baer
- Production Manager Bleu Pellman
- Producer Joshua Steele
SEMINAR
Behind the Curtain Cincinnati 