ROBERT PIERCE
• Leader & Times
The plains of Southwest Kansas are a far cry from the mountains of Austria, but Liberal’s community theater group is determined to make the hills come alive with “The Sound of Music” this July.
July 10, 11, 12 and 13, Rainbow Players is bringing the beloved musical to life on the stage of the Clifford and Irene Pepper Showcase Theater at Seward County Community College.
“The Sound of Music” is based on a true life story that follows Maria, a free-spirited young Austrian woman studying to become a nun at Nonnberg Abbey.
Maria’s youthful enthusiasm and lack of discipline cause some concern, and the Mother Abbess sends her to the villa of retired naval officer Captain Georg von Trapp, a widower, to be the governess to his seven children.
“She goes there and starts to question as she goes through that process,” co-director Kathy Harris said. “She is encountering feelings and things she has not before and is conflicted. It’s the story of her finding what it is God wants for her life and the power of music to transform and bring joy to the life of the family.”
Harris is joined in the director’s chair by Aspen Jaramillo, and Harris said she and Jaramillo chose “The Sound of Music” for this year’s summer production because of their love of the story and the musical itself.
“We thought it was one the community would really enjoy,” Harris said.
Though this is the first time for both directors to head up a Rainbow Players production, Harris and Jaramillo each have previous experience with other stage production.
Jaramillo is a music teacher at Liberal’s Cottonwood Elementary School and heads up the school’s annual Patriot Day ceremony in September and other programs, and Harris has directed children’s musicals at First Southern Baptist Church.
Despite those being smaller scale productions, Harris said she and Jaramillo are handling directing “The Sound of Music” quite well.
“It’s been a lot of work, but it’s rewarding,” she said. “It’s been fun, challenging.”
The Rainbow Players production features a great cast with lots of talent, with some newcomers, some veterans and even some returning veterans to the SCCC stage.
“Our Maria did theater in high school but has not since,” Harris said. “She’s got a lovely voice. She’s very talented.”
Practices for the show began in May, and Harris said so far, they have gone well.
“Everything’s coming along as planned and on schedule,” she said. “We’re looking forward to that opening date next week, and everything is coming together well.”
Fans of “The Sound of Music” are familiar with the musical’s story and songs, but for those who are only familiar with the movie version, Harris said the stage version brings a slight difference.
“Come prepared,” she said. “There are at least three songs in the stage show that are not in the movie, and they’re all a treat. If they’ve never seen ‘The Sound of Music,’ I hope they’ll come out and see it and grow to love it as I do and many in the cast do.”
The cast of characters in “The Sound of Music” ranges from children to older adults, and Harris said the local cast has a similar range of ages.
“Our cast ranges from 8 years old to senior adults,” she said. “Our nun choir is mostly teenage girls.”
Harris said the theater experience has been particularly fun for those in the nun choir.
“They’re enjoying it and having fun,” she said. “Some of them are new to theater.”
Harris, however, said Rainbow Players officials would like to see more participation in the future for auditions from adults in the community.
“We didn’t get a huge number of adults to come and audition,” she said. “In the end, it’s fine. We got who we needed. We’ve got a great cast, but we would love to see more adults come back in with us in the theater.”
The local theater production is somewhat of a family affair too for Harris, as three of her children are in the show this year. The show also features Harris’s husband, Jeremy, the worship leader at FSBC, as Captain von Trapp.
Harris said her children have done prior Rainbow Players shows, and they are doing well with this year’s production.
“It’s fun to do it together,” she said. “It is a big time commitment. We enjoy making that time commitment together so we are not apart from each other all summer long as we spend lots of time together.”
Originally scheduled to play a Nazi in the production, Jeremy took on the captain’s role after a previous cast member was unable to continue with the production. Kathy said though Jeremy has great experience with singing as a worship pastor, a musical was a new, but fun experience for him.
“He was able to pick it up and hit the ground running,” she said. “He’s had the part for two weeks.”
Tickets for the upcoming production of “The Sound of Music” are available online through a link on the Rainbow Players/Liberal Community Theatre Facebook page. Tickets can also be purchased at the door for $15 for adults and $10 for seniors and children 7 years old and younger.
Showtimes for “The Sound of Music” are 7:30 p.m. July 10, 11 and 12 and 3 p.m. July 13 in the Showcase Theater.
Kathy said she is excited for the upcoming production, and she described her experience directing the show as a whirlwind.
“I love this show,” she said. “I’ve had fun working with the actors and the talent. Rainbow Players has talented people who come. The artists have done a beautiful job. We’ve got people working on sets.”
The cast and crew of the Rainbow Players production recently had its first cue-to-cue rehearsal, with all cast members present, along with lighting crews, and Kathy said to put on a successful show takes an entire team. She said the rehearsal went quite well, and everyone is excited for opening night.
“We need the time we have left, but we’ll be ready,” she said. “We’re excited for everyone to come out and see the show.”
And though the landscape of Southwest Kansas is quite different than that of Austria, Kathy said everyone involved in the local production is determine to make the hills come alive with “The Sound of Music.”
“Theater is around to transport you to a different place, time and story,” she said. “In ‘The Sound of Music,’ we are being transported to Austria.”
