Stage Review - The Sound of Music (Red Curtain Foundation for the Arts)
Stage Review - The Sound of Music
Presented By: Red Curtain Foundation for the Arts - Marysville, WA
Show Run: November 28 - December 21, 2025
Date Reviewed: Sunday, December 7, 2025
Run Time: 3 Hours (including a 15-minute intermission)
Reviewed By: Greg Heilman
I’m here to settle the eternal debate: Is Die Hard a Christmas movie? Well, it can be looked at two ways, first off… wait, that’s right, I’m not here to talk about Die Hard, I’m here to talk about The Sound of Music. So why did my mind go to Die Hard and what does that film have to do with The Sound of Music? First off, I can probably work a bit on my segue game, but really I’ve always wondered why The Sound of Music is considered holiday fare this time of year. It’s not really a Christmas story, is it? In the end, though, with its positive messaging, alpine setting, and a song that has become synonymous with the season (“brown paper packages tied up with strings”), The Sound of Music has become a holiday staple—kind of like, well, Die Hard.
At Red Curtain Foundation for the Arts, their production of The Sound of Music, running in Marysville through December 21 and under the direction of Diane Jamieson, leans heart-forward into what makes the musical endure: its innocence, its emotional sincerity, and its courage in the face of a shifting world. From the start, the nuns of the abbey fill the space with a full sound and tight harmony, a beautifully blended range of voices that feels both expansive and precise. It sets the tone immediately: this is a cast with vocal strength and clarity.
But if there is anything that hinders the production, it comes down to that elusive element of balance between the singers and the live orchestra. I love a live orchestra, and whenever it can be used, it is almost always preferable to canned tracks. Yet when the volume of the musicians consistently overpowers the vocal performances on stage, the show can’t quite achieve the heights it otherwise would. This was especially noticeable in Marina Pierce’s performance as Maria Rainer. Marina has a lovely voice and delivers a superb Maria, but at the Sunday matinee I attended, it often became difficult to discern her vocals over the orchestra. Whether the issue lies in microphone configuration or simple volume calibration, the imbalance was persistent throughout the performance.
It’s far less of an issue in ensemble numbers, where volume and momentum carry the sound forward. The nuns and the Von Trapp children both offer full, rich harmonies with a wide range of identifiable voices, each blending beautifully into the whole. Beyond the ensembles, Carissa Meisner-Smit (Mother Abbess) and Sabrina Otness (Fraulein Schraeder) also contribute magnificently, both vocally and in their sharply drawn character work.
Marina’s Maria is an immediate spark of warmth and sincerity. Even when the balance works against her, her character work shines—playful, grounded, and emotionally open. Her yodeling in “The Lonely Goatherd” is particularly charming, made even sweeter by the staging that places Maria’s bedroom on an elevated platform. The children—Abigail Broughton, Parker Sharp, Elise Peterson, Liron Yeager, Natalie Merz, Sammi Woodbury, and Anaya Singh—offer a tight ensemble with lovely harmonics, especially in “Do-Re-Mi,” and the accompanying choreography from Carissa Meisner Smit gives the number an authentic sweetness.
Rayan Atallah brings a steady presence to Captain Georg von Trapp, a role that can be deceptively difficult because of the limited time the musical gives him to transition from stiff and stern to soft and loving. I’ve seen other Georgs struggle to convey that shift convincingly, and the relationship between Georg and Maria can sometimes feel underdeveloped as a result. Here, though, Rayan does a nice job navigating the softening of the character; his emotional openness grows scene by scene, and his wonderful deep singing voice adds a richness that supports the arc. That said, I found myself wishing his sternness—rooted in Georg’s naval background—was more forward at the start, to heighten the contrast of his eventual warmth, and some reactions, such as moments where he shakes his arms and stomps off in frustration, also feel slightly inconsistent with the character’s military discipline. But overall, he brings a sincerity to Georg’s transformation that helps ground the emotional heart of the story. Without the Edelweiss scene actively depicted in the stage version of the musical, as it is in film, the relationship isn’t given the requisite opportunity to blossom, but despite that, Rayan and Marina portray it nicely here.
Beyond Maria and Georg, and the solid performance from Carissa as Mother Abbess, Morgan Peeler’s Max Detweiler lands with personality and charm, even if the vocals sit as “good enough”. His confidence in the character comes through and he carries a good deal of presence when Max is on stage. At the same time, Sabrina’s Schraeder is an excellent blend of elegance and soft villainy. Her vocal work adds sophistication to the role and provides a sharp contrast to Marina’s warmth.
Scott B. Randall’s work in scenic and lighting design gives the Von Trapp villa a warm, contextual backdrop with murals of the Alps painted across the upstage wall. It’s a beautifully conceived touch. The multi-level construction allows for some clever staging, though it sometimes makes distinguishing locations tricky. This is especially true when the stairway—used as the grand staircase in the villa—is also employed in Maria’s opening sequence to represent the mountains she dances among. It’s an elegant solution, if one that requires the audience to recalibrate between scenes. Cathy Clark’s scenic painting and Becca Brunelle’s costumes enrich the world, especially during the ball, where the costuming provides color and elegance without overshadowing the actors.
One scene that deserves mention involves the thunderstorm preceding “The Lonely Goatherd”. Initially, the flashes of light appear without accompanying thunder, creating a brief moment of confusion that feels like a possible technical issue. But later, when the thunder and light are paired during the children’s frightened dash to Maria’s room, the effect lands exactly as intended—warm, comforting, and emotionally effective.
Carissa Meisner Smit’s choreography keeps the action character-driven and clear, never overwhelming the young performers or distracting from the story. Jay Vilhauer’s musical direction maintains the emotional arc of the score even when the sound mix creates hurdles. The orchestra—Jake Cunningham, Cody Jonas, Luke Selback, Iris Ingram, Bill Kusler, Gregg Hirakawa, and Mark Kunz—plays with enthusiasm and heart, though that same full-bodied warmth sometimes contributes to the vocal balance issues mentioned earlier. I’ve brought up my issues with the book for The Sound of Music, where specific musical numbers are placed in the stage version versus the film, and how that placement contributes to some limitations. But even with that, and with credit to director Diane Jamieson and the cast, crew, and creative team she has assembled, this is a production that hits its marks emotionally and is among the most enjoyable of the versions I’ve seen.
Red Curtain’s Sound of Music embraces the sincerity that has kept this musical beloved for generations. Its themes—family, love, moral courage—remain universally resonant, and this production treats them with care. With heartfelt performances, lovely harmonies, inventive staging moments, and an earnest approach to the material, the show remains a warm and welcome part of the holiday season… kind of like Die Hard.
The Sound on Music runs on stage at Red Curtain Foundation for the Arts in Marysville through December 21. For more information, including ticket availability and sales, visit https://redcurtainfoundation.org/.
Photo credit: Britta Glass
