The fact that it's Miss Linda Productions first big show, is extremely surprising.
It's surprising only because almost every aspect of the show was meticulously delivered -- be it the singing, the orchestral music, the costumes, the staging, the lighting and the acting.
That just doesn't happen in your first show. Not often, at least. And granted, all of the pieces in place have tons of theater experience, so it's not like this was anyone's first rodeo, but as a collective, it was, and that's impressive,
Which, isn't to say that everything was perfect. There were a few issues which I'll get into later, but let's get into the things I enjoyed.
Much kudos goes to Joel Corda and Linda Fuller, the show's director and producer, for handling such a large cast and getting the most out of everyone.
Lindsay Jolliff, especially, brought plenty of positive energy, vocal talent, attractiveness and charm to Maria Rainer.
If you had never seen the Julie Andrews version, you'd be hard pressed to find someone who's done it as well as Jolliff. And, even if you have seen the movie version many times, she still stood out and made the role her own.
Some of my favorite moments were her interaction with the Von Trapp kids in "Do-Re-Mi," along with both the reprise and the main portion of "My Favorite Things" with Mother Abbess.
Kudos, too, must go to all of the children -- Rebekah Hegg, Andrew Cantley, Kathryn Rarden, Devin Green, Kaitlyn Fellows, Mari Anderson and Adrianne Purpura. They played well off of both Jolliff and Jason Hodne, who played Captain Georg von Trapp and also delivered with their chances to shine on their own.
As for Hodne, it was a little bittersweet seeing him perform, only because he's such a talented singer and actor who is leaving Great Falls for a while to pursue his future in Florida. I wish him the best of luck and know that if you missed seeing him in either this show or "South Pacific" at UGF, you missed a performer with a natural gift for theater.
It also helped all of the performers having a good orchestra, conducted by Steve Olson, there as well. Considering how much music they had to play and how often they were performing, they all pulled it off wonderfully, especially knowing that each of the performers were high school students.
Indeed, there were a few songs where the pitch would be a little off, particularly during the song "An Ordinary Couple," but again, all things considered, they did a solid job.
I also enjoyed how the show started with the nuns singing behind the audience and making their way onto the stage. As they sang I felt as if I were in a real cathedral during the gospel songs in Latin and English. Credit must go to Sarah Raines, Rachel Hegg, Mary Rapkoch Dupuis and Jennifer Cantley for their wonderful vocal contributions.
They looked like nuns, with authentic costumes, too. In fact, all of the costumes were bright and fit the characters styles. Nadine Corda deserves a lot of credit for making the actors all look great as well as period appropriate.
But, for as much as I enjoyed the show, and I did, there were a few things that could have been tightened up.
Firstly, a little background.
I attended a dress rehearsal on Tuesday evening. During the rehearsal, one of the biggest concerns I had was that it was very difficult to hear the singers over the orchestra in front of the stage. Miss Linda assured me that this problem would be fixed, and for the most part it was.
However, there were a few singers' voices who still got lost behind the orchestra.
The area mics hanging above the stage did alleviate a lot of the hearing problems I had on Tuesday, however, there were still times where I wished I could have heard all of the singers better. The children, particularly, got lost now and then, most likely because they were so far from the mics due their height, whereas Hodne, who is very tall, had no problem.
However for her part, Jolliff did a good job projecting, even if there were a few moments where I missed hearing a few lines from her. Same for Darryl Stevens, who played Max Detweiler.
Another small issue with the microphones came when the orchestra wasn't playing, and there would be some subtle yet noticeable feedback, particularly when the taller actors would stand right below the center and stage left mics.
Then, in the scene where we first meet Elsa Schraeder and Max Detweiler, there was a loud crack, from what sounded like a firecracker. I wasn't sure if it was part of the show or not, but it did take me out of the moment for a few seconds mostly because I didn't see it coming.
Finally, and this is a somewhat minor complaint, but for the scenes in the covenant, having a cross or two somewhere on stage would not have gone amiss. They may have added an extra element that helped the viewers put themselves into the room.
Nevertheless, the show I saw received a much-deserving standing applause. I was impressed by the number of people attending a Sunday afternoon showing, as I've been to other shows in Great Falls on Sunday where hardly anyone was in the audience. So, it looks as if the show was well received by the community, which is great news for the Great Falls theater scene.
Miss Linda has stepped into the theater game with a bang, and she's proven to be a major player, because, as I said above, there was some mystery surrounding this show. Would the cast and crew get along together? Would the orchestra and singers mesh well? Would the Great Falls High auditorium be too big of venue?
These were all questions I wondered about before the show opened, and each of them were addressed almost beyond expectation.
If you missed this show, I encourage you to go see whatever Miss Linda Productions has up their sleeves next. I for one can't wait to find out.
