IN A SCENE from Westminster Community Playhouse’s production of “The Sound of Music,” are (left to right) Allan Bangasser, Jaxon Finn Wolf, Oona Murphy, Jessica James Lewis, Annika Kedhar. Caddie Murphy, Zoe Nauman and Savannah Grace Mosley (Photo by Francis Santiago).

By Thomas Martino
Orange County Tribune

History may repeat itself – but it can be said, that love transcends all.

Westminster Community Playhouse is now presenting its annual musical, as they stage the beloved “The Sound of Music.”
Directed by Jesse Seann Atkinson and based on true events, it tells the story of Maria Rainer (Jessica James Lewis), petitioning to become a nun at a local convent in 1938 Austria, shortly before Germany takes over and the country becomes Nazi-occupied.

The Mother Abbess of the convent (played by Jennifer Walquist), not knowing what to do with the unconventional Maria, decides to assign her to play governess to the family of a decorated captain of the Austrian navy, Captain Georg Von Trapp (Edward Bangasser): but the seven children of the family have already driven away several previous governesses with their antics and pranks.

There’s Liesl (Zoe Nauman) the eldest, smitten with the local messenger boy Rolf (Kai Maldonado); and her younger siblings Friedrich (Jaxon Finn Wolff), Louisa (Savannah Grace Mosley), Brigitta (Annika Kedhar), Kurt (Allan Bangasser), Marta (Caddie Murphy) and the youngest, Gretl (Oona Murphy).

But the strict Captain Von Trapp runs the household like a military unit, commanding the house staff Franz and Frau Schmidt (Karen Elder-Dohm & Mary-Pat Gonzalez) and even his children with the screeching sound of a boatswain’s whistle. He expects no less from Maria.

But needless to say, that’s not going to happen.

Right from the start, the novice nun-in-training brings brightness and joy into the once sterile house, as well as her infectious love of music. This chafes the captain, who hasn’t allowed – or been able to bear – music in his home since the passing of his late wife.

But Maria’s time in the household looks to be limited, as the children’s father is already looking to marry the equally wealthy Elsa Schraeder (Amanda Webb) – even though their views differ on the potential Nazi annexation of their beloved country.

While the captain is devoted to Austria, family friend Max (Richard Comeau) mentions that the Germans have promised they won’t invade – but wryly adds that if so, better to have friends on both sides.
A storm is brewing, whether the family – or even the country – is ready for it or not. Can the family and Maria find their strength together?

For a smaller, more intimate venue, this Westminster Community Playhouse production of “The Sound of Music’ is larger than life.
With a cast as talented as it is expansive, this show is a marvel. Lewis as Maria is breathtaking – magical even – in her performance of such classics as “Do-Re-Mi” and “The Lonely Goatherd.” as well as a duet with Walquist’s Mother Abbess for “My Favorite Things” (whose own remarkable vocal talents are witnessed herein – particularly with “Climb Ev’ry Mountain”).

The younger cast members do a remarkable job of their own, with heavenly melodies in their musical numbers including “The Sound of Music (reprise)”, and of course the beloved “So Long, Farewell.”

Even the youths’ acting is outstanding, such as with the conflict in Nauman’s Liesl with the change in her boyfriend as he is taken in by the Nazi rhetoric, or the undertone of unease and fear on the face of Mosley’s Lousia as the family performs under pressure before members of the Reich. (Bonus points for Comeau’s delightfully charming Max.)

It’s a stunning and moving production, something for the whole family to appreciate and take in – and while so many may be familiar with the film version, there is something striking and special about seeing it brought alive on the WCP stage.

A show for young and old, whether you’re a fan of the film or have never seen it before, “The Sound of Music” at the Westminster Community Playhouse is a thing of beauty and grace, to fall in love with and be enchanted by.

“The Sound of Music”: Jessica James Lewis, Edward Bangasser and Jennifer Walquist star in this beautiful production of the Rogers & Hammerstein classic. Now playing through June 8 at the Westminster Community Playhouse, 7272 Maple St, Westminster. Ticketing information available online at http://www.wcpstage.com, or call (714) 893-8626. Appropriate for all ages.