Andrew Lloyd WebbeR David Ian

and The Really Useful Group

present

THE SOUND OF MUSIC
Music by Richard Rodgers
Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II

Book by HOWARD LINDSAY and RUSSEL CROUSE

Suggested by “THE TRAPP FAMILY SINGERS” by Maria Augusta Trapp

Education Resource Pack

 Contents
Introduction [ Page 2

Synopsis [ Page 3

The Production
Fulfilling a Dream: Andrew Lloyd Webber [ Page 4
Dreams Really Do Come True – Step by Step: How the Show Was Made [ Page 5
Diary of an Actress: Sophie Bould as Liesl [ Page 7
Who’s Who Behind the Scenes [ Page 9

Historical Background
The True Story of the Von Trapp Family [ Page 10
What Happened next to the Von Trapp Family? [ Page 12
The Journey of Maria’s Story [ Page 13

Follow Up Activities
My Favourite Things [ Page 14
Design Your Own Costumes [ Page 15
Writing About the Play 1 [ Page 16
Writing About the Play 2 [ Page 17

Glossary [ Page 18

Producers [ Page 19

Bibliography and Further Resources [ Page 20

1
 Introduction
In this Education Resource Pack we have included a variety of background information and
follow up activities to enhance your students’ experience of a visit to our wonderful stage
production of The Sound of Music.

We would highly recommend it to children and young people of all ages.

Younger children will enjoy the music, the dancing and the beautiful sets, as well as the
fabulous performances by children of their own age.

Older children will be able to create their own response to the themes of the show and we
have included a series of follow up ideas with particular reference to KS2.

Each page also indicates curriculum links for primary or secondary teaching. The historical
background to the play would make an excellent starting point for history and citizenship
topics, and there is a wealth of information of particular interest to students of Drama,
Dance or Expressive Arts at BTEC, GCSE or A Level.

We hope you find this pack useful. Enjoy the show!

2
 Synopsis
In 1930s Austria a young girl called Maria, with a religious devotion and a passion for singing,
is struggling to fit into life in a convent. When a nearby household needs a governess, she
is sent by the Mother Abbess to look after the children of a widowed naval Captain, Georg
von Trapp.

Her fun-loving nature and natural creativity soon infect the children and they learn to play
and, of course, sing – in contrast to the stern upbringing their father would prefer.

The oldest daughter, Liesl, is in love with the local telegram delivery boy, Rolf, while her
father is courting a rich Viennese woman, Baroness Schraeder. However, it becomes clear,
first to the children and finally to Maria herself, that the Captain is really in love with her.

Meanwhile, Nazism and the eventual occupation of Austria by Germany is casting a shadow
over all their lives. The Captain is fiercely patriotic and cannot agree with the Baroness, or
his friend Max, about giving in to the inevitable German takeover.

As the family’s predicament becomes more dangerous, Max finds a way out and persuades
the Captain to sing with his family at the Salzburg music festival, during which they escape,
pursued by soldiers.

3
Curriculum Links: Music/BTEC Performing Arts/Drama/Expressive Arts
Fulfilling A Dream: Andrew Lloyd Webber
8.30am, 19 May 1961. I remember the date and time vividly.
I was 13. School was Westminster. Elvis was king. Number one
in the British charts was Floyd Cramer’s ‘On the Rebound’.
It would be disingenuous to suggest that there was not a
mocking tone directed at me by the occupants of my school
common room. ‘Look at this Lloydy. Have you read this one?
It says if you are a diabetic craving extra sweetness take a
load of insulin to the Palace Theatre and you will not fail to
thrill to The Sound of Music.’
The reason for this celebration of stinkeroo reviews was
that I had been the night before to the opening of the
London production of The Sound of Music. I had written a
fan letter to Richard Rodgers and amazingly he had replied.
So not only did I see a dress rehearsal of The Sound of Music
but I got a ticket in the upper circle for the opening.
All of this was a cause of much mirth among my school
companions. For in those days probably the most
unfashionable cause you could champion in Britain was the
musical.
My first encounter with Rodgers and Hammerstein was via
my father. He was then director of composition at the Royal
College of Music. On my tenth birthday he interrupted my
endless replays of ‘Jailhouse Rock’ and insisted that he play
me something. Onto the battered 78 record player was
plonked Ezio Pinza singing ‘Some Enchanted Evening’. Then
Dad played it on the piano. Before he let me back to my
room, he told me a story I shall always remember. Dad used
to compose what was then called ‘light’ music under a pen
name. In 1948, he had been to see his publisher at Chappells,
Teddy Holmes. Holmes was also Rodgers and
Hammerstein’s publisher in Britain. ‘Bill,’ he had said to my
Dad, ‘this will send the birth rate up.’ I can’t remember
whether I then completely understood what Holmes
was driving at, but on my tenth birthday Rodgers and
Hammerstein joined Elvis Presley and The Everly Brothers
as heroes. I know why. Great melody has always deeply
affected me and Rodgers is possibly the 20th century’s
greatest tune writer. This is not to deny Hammerstein’s
enormous contribution. The simplicity of his lyrics is truly
deceptive. Take ‘People Will Say We’re in Love’. Thousands
of songs, even well-known songs, make the few rhymes for
‘love’ sound contrived. ‘Don’t start collecting things/Give me
my rose and my glove/Sweetheart, they’re suspecting things/
People will say we’re in love’ does no such thing.
It seems hard today to believe that a musical such as Carousel
was considered among the 1961 kitchen sink drama embued
chattering classes to be sentimental rubbish. On the morning
of 19 May 1961 The Sound of Music was considered by 1961
theatricals to be completely beyond the pale. I remember the
director of The Boy Friend, Vida Hope, lecturing me on the
New York version, saying it was cringe-makingly ludicrous
with a 50-year-old woman (Mary Martin) capering around
the stage pretending she was 20 with a gang of nauseating
children. In short The Sound of Music was not the flavour of
the month with the opinion makers of 19 May 1961.
However, I remember among what even Richard Rodgers
described in his autobiography as devastating reviews one
which was spot on. The cut of its jib was that somewhere
in the 21st century a lonely astronaut will be singing the
unbelievably catchy tunes of what may be the greatest popular
score ever written. This scribe had hit the red button.
I have for years wanted to produce The Sound of Music
myself. The theatre show is wonderfully crafted and I have
always wanted to see the show cast with a young Maria who
you really do believe climbs a tree and scrapes her knees.
But to find someone aged 20 who was a big enough name
to fill the London Palladium seemed a tall order to both
myself and my co-producer David Ian.
A promising discussion or two with Scarlett Johansson, who
obviously ticked every box and by the way can really sing,
sadly led nowhere. After this, both David and I thought
the project was undoable. That is why we wondered if the
show could be cast on TV. A year after David and I initially
approached the BBC we found ourselves spending the
summer in a way we never thought we would ever do; having
a great time with Graham Norton on live primetime TV.
It is a serious and great pleasure to David and I that not
only do we believe we discovered the perfect Maria in
Connie Fisher, but that several of our girls are already on
the path of successful careers. We are proud that over eight
million people saw the final of a show devoted to musical
theatre and even more proud that we know that Maria has
rejuvenated the public appetite not just for The Sound of
Music but for musicals across the board.
Jeremy Sams and I did not want to stage a version of the
movie, so this production follows the original theatre script
with a few exceptions. We have added ‘I Have Confidence in
Me’ from the film and substituted the song ‘An Ordinary
Couple’ in Act II with the wonderful ‘Something Good’ that
Richard Rodgers wrote for the movie, not just the music but
also the words. I believe it is one of his greatest tunes and a
fitting swansong from one of the finest melodists of all time.
I hope in fulfilling a dream that I have had since the morning
of 19 May 1961 that we are doing justice to a musical that
arguably contains the best-loved songs of all time.
November 2006
4
Curriculum Links: BTEC/GCSE Performing Arts • Business/Technical Studies
Dreams Really Do Come True
A step by step account of how the show was made
Planning
Years of dreaming and planning finally made it possible for
Andrew Lloyd Webber & David Ian to announce their new
production of The Sound of Music at the beginning of 2006.
Permission
The rights to The Sound of Music are controlled by the
Rodgers and Hammerstein Organization, so no production
can take place unless they agree to it. Fortunately, Andrew
Lloyd Webber has had a long working relationship with them
and after careful negotiations, they gave him and David the
go-ahead.
Investment
Mounting a West End show is an expensive business. Lloyd
Webber worked with David Ian, his co-producer and Ianís
company, Live Nation, to raise the money for the show
to go ahead. This means they had to ask companies and
individuals to invest. If the show did well, investors would
get a share of the profits, but there is always a risk in theatre
that there will not be any profits. Ian and Lloyd Webber
showed that they had faith in their project by matching the
inward investment with money from their own companies.
Venue
It was important to get the right theatre. The London
Palladium has been a favourite for spectacular family
musicals since the 1970s. It seats 2,283 people but still has
an intimate atmosphere. It would be ready for The Sound of
Music at the end of 2006.
A Director
The producers’ first choice was Jeremy Sams and they were
delighted when Sams accepted the job. Sams has worked
extensively as a theatre director in the West End, nationally
and internationally, as well as composing, arranging and
directing music for over 50 shows for film, theatre, television
and radio. He also wrote the book for Chitty Chitty Bang Bang,
which was a huge success at the Palladium and on tour.
Choices
Many important artistic choices had to be made about
staging this new production of the show. Most audience
members would be familiar with the film version, but this
show is based on the original book by Howard Lindsay and
Russel Crouse, written for the first stage production. It
was important to meet people’s expectations, while also
introducing them to the exciting live experience of seeing the
story unfold on stage. Working closely with designer
Robert Jones and associate director Anna Lindstrum,
Jeremy Sams planned the structure and blocking of the show.
Casting
The most important choice of all would be in the casting
of Maria. It would be a challenge to find a performer with
the right look, the right voice, enough experience and,
yet, who would look young enough to play a 20-year-old
tomboy who climbs trees. Andrew Lloyd Webber and David
Ian took the unusual step of casting Maria’s part through
a reality TV show on the BBC. Open auditions were held
and a school for aspiring Marias was set up, to ensure that
the girls had the best possible opportunity to develop their
skills. When Connie Fisher won the final, over eight million
people were watching at home. The production had created
a new household name overnight and created professional
opportunities for several of the runners up.
Continues on page 6
5
Curriculum Links: BTEC/GCSE Performing Arts • Business/Technical Studies
From page 5
Design
The design vision was formed after a week of discussion
about shapes: curves would represent the freedom of
nature in the mountains and landscapes; straight lines
would represent the confines of the abbey and the house.
Colours would also be used to emphasise the contrasting
environments: the natural, lush green of the outdoors
contrasting with the pale interiors. Maria’s curtains would
bring the colours of nature into the Von Trapp house.
Robert Jones, the designer, visited Salzburg to make sure the
visual impression was absolutely accurate: he also researched
exactly the styles, textures and shapes of clothes from
Austria in the 1930s. He collected photographs, sketches
and fabric samples to develop the authentic visual style of
the piece, then worked closely with Jeremy Sams to create
a storyboard, scene by scene, for each location. Every scene
change was designed to be as smooth as possible, like a
film, moving the audience on to each new location without
stopping.
Putting it all together
In a room at the top of the Cambridge Theatre, Jones spent
weeks building a set model. He created detailed drawings for
Matt Towell, the production manager, whose job was to liaise
with the production team, set builders, building staff and the
Activity
Read closely and see if you can find the answer to the
following questions:
1 Who are the producers of The Sound of Music?
2 Which theatre was chosen for The Sound of Music?
Can give you a reason why it was chosen?
3 Is this version of The Sound of Music based on the
film version or the stage version?
4 Where did the designer, Robert Jones, go to
research the costumes?
5 What parts of the set had to be built and used in
the rehearsal room? (Check the Glossary in this
pack to find out more.)
6 Why were adults employed to play the children
during the early part of the rehearsal process?
7 How many weeks do you think it took to rehearse
the show?
8 Follow Up Activity: After you have seen the show,
watch the 1965 film of The Sound of Music and see
how many differences you can spot, for example:
settings, songs, characterisation.
health and safety advisor. Certain parts of the set, including
large trucks and a travelator, were built early on so that they
could be installed in the rehearsal room. The rest of the set
had to be constructed and fitted up in the Palladium, in time
for the technical rehearsals to begin. Using Jones’s detailed
drawings, the 400 costumes were sewn together, while lists of
props and furniture were drawn up. Some of the props
had to be made or found, in time for rehearsals, others could
be introduced at the technical rehearsals.
Rehearsals
Rehearsals began with workshops run by Sams with
chorographer Arlene Phillips and children’s director
Frank Thompson. Six adult actors were employed to take
the parts of the children. This enabled all the blocking
and relationships to be worked out before the children
themselves arrived, making it simpler and less tiring for them.
The company spent four weeks working intensively in the
rehearsal rooms before moving into the Palladium for two
weeks of technical and dress rehearsals before the preview
performances began.
Adapted from ‘A Song Is No Song Till You Sing It’ by
Mark Fox, featured in the souvenir brochure 2006
Did you know?
Robert Jones created
a unique design for the
curtains, which Maria turns
into the children’s clothes.
By drawing his own pattern,
instead of buying in fabric,
he made sure that the
curtain material would never
go out of production, so it
would always be possible to
replace the costumes.
6
Curriculum Links: BTEC Performing Arts/A Level Drama/GCSE Drama/Expressive Arts
Diary of an Actress
Sophie Bould [ Liesl
Week One
A whirlwind of a week – so many names and faces to
remember. I met everyone on Monday morning, where we
were all greeted by speeches from our producers David Ian
and Andrew Lloyd Webber. Coffee and pastries were passed
around while we listened to our director, Jeremy Sams give
us the plans for the day.
We had a chance to look at the set design, followed by a
read-through and company sing-along. Singing all the songs
together eased my nerves considerably. A smile was shared
between Connie (Maria) and I, before our duet. The room
fell silent to hear the beautiful Lesley Garrett sing the
finale, for which she received rip-roaring applause from
everyone.
After a much-needed night’s sleep, Tuesday brought with it
hard work. Neil (Rolf) and I started script work with Jeremy
and Anna (associate director). It’s so important to get a
back-story for Liesl and Rolf’s relationship. How long have
they known each other? Have they kissed yet? How often
do they meet? Dancing and singing followed in the afternoon;
it’s dawned on me how much work I’ve got to do.
By midweek I was working with all the young actors playing
my brothers and sisters; I’m still learning their names and
I’ve known them a week! There are three teams, Mittens,
Geese and Kettles. By Thursday we’d managed to learn the
music and movements for ‘Do-Re-Mi’. A little complicated,
but thankfully I’m surrounded by 18 kids who know what
they’re doing and don’t hesitate in helping me out.
Friday and Saturday were taken up with drilling in the music
for ‘The Lonely Goatherd’ followed by putting it on its feet.
David Ian popped in to watch us on the Saturday afternoon,
and I’m sure seeing us all shuffling round the room being
goats made him wonder what on earth was going on. But
one thing’s for sure – I don’t think I’ve ever laughed so much.
I love being a Von Trapp kid – it’s given me the licence to
have pure, unadulterated fun!
Week Two
The days seem to be blending into one, there is so much
going on – learning music, blocking scenes, setting numbers.
The beginning of the week was dedicated to more music
learning, with the three teams of Von Trapp children. We
concentrated on the title piece, a song which I must confess
is my favourite. All the children sing in close harmony,
unaccompanied. Not an easy feat for anyone, let alone
youngsters. My pitch pipe gives us the note off-stage before
we enter, a scary thought, let’s hope I get it right every night!
Later that day the children and I began rehearsing some of
our scenes together with Connie (Maria), who managed to
master the art of leap-froging after the first few failed
attempts: Connie now leaps for England!
A full company rehearsal was called the next day. It was
great to be with everyone for the first time since the read-
through on the first day. Waltzing followed (executed
beautifully by all) and the children and I then performed
‘So Long, Farewell’.
Continues on page 8
7
Curriculum Links: BTEC Performing Arts/A level Drama/GCSE Drama/Expressive Arts
From page 7
By midweek ‘My Favorite Things’ had been set and then
Connie and I started looking at our scene, together with
Jeremy and Anna (director and associate director). There are
so many complex layers to Maria and Liesl’s relationship and
I’m only just beginning to discover them.
Thursday was an emotional day in the rehearsal room. One
particular scene, involving my father, the Captain, struck a
few chords and I had difficulty holding back the tears.
On Friday morning Neil and I made our way to the
recording studios in South West London to record our duet
for the album. Andrew (LW) came along to lend a helping
hand. Neil and I recorded our vocals over the pre-recorded
orchestral accompaniment. We were then invited to hear
what it sounded like. It’s a bizarre thing for me, to hear my
voice, singing along with a stunning orchestra – what an
opportunity, and I’m very grateful for it.
Week Three
Act Two this week. The ‘book’ of the musical becomes much
darker in Act Two and the politics begin to dominate
proceedings for the Von Trapp family.
Tuesday brought with it the first of many press calls. All the
children, Connie and I attended. We arrived at the Palladium
at 9.30am and posed for a sea of photographers from the
national press. Interviews followed, including live coverage
on Sky News. I’ve never known anything like this. The
publicity this show has accomplished, even before we’ve
opened, is out of this world. Having said that, it’s only one
small part of this job: a part which I’d much rather get done
quickly and efficiently before getting back to the real work in
the rehearsal room.
Rehearsals this week have been with most of the company,
which I’ve so enjoyed. We began working on the concert
scene this week, a tricky part of the show, with lots of
singing, choreography and perhaps a quick change or two.
Now the scenes themselves are getting there, we have been
linking them together so that they become seamless.
The full company worked on the final scene of the show on
Thursday. Again, the tears nearly made an appearance this
week, this time by the ever-professional stage management
team sitting in front of us all – I’m sure I saw a few watery
eyes during ‘Climb Ev’ry Mountain’!
Now we are at the point where everything is pretty much
blocked and choreographed but, I assure you, we are
nowhere near a finished product. Everything will be
changed, rearranged and changed again. We start running
sections next week, so lots of sleep and vitamins for me in
preparation. It’s going to be non-stop from here on in.
Week Four
Absolute exhaustion. Sometimes I don’t know how everyone
keeps going with such energy and enthusiasm, and I don’t just
mean the actors: the production team and stage management
are working just as hard, if not more so.
Any spare moments this week seemed to have been filled
with costume and wig fittings. Now we get to see what it’s
going to feel like, more importantly, what we’re going to
look like! Our designer Rob has done an amazing job, as have
all the costume department and dressmakers. I can’t wait
to put these clothes on! The way clothes were cut during
this period (1939) is just beautiful, and to be wearing some
authentic fabrics from Salzburg is just amazing.
At the beginning of the week, we ran the whole of Act One.
Now we could start to really see the piece growing. I found
it so beneficial to run the scenes together; it enables me to
find a character journey, and relationship journeys between
other characters and mine. I also enjoyed sitting with other
members of the company and watching parts of the show
which I hadn’t seen yet.
Act Two followed later in the week. The whole company
sat around the edges of the rehearsal room, watching on
as scenes took place. The atmosphere was wonderfully
supportive, helping to create a ‘nerve-free’ rehearsal room.
However, it wasn’t just the company who watched the runs –
we had guests visiting: David Ian and Andrew Lloyd Webber
watched on along with numerous other VIPs, including
Mary Rodgers (Richard Rodgers’s daughter). What an honour
it was to meet her and hear her talk so highly of the parts of
rehearsals she came to see.
We managed to squeeze in a couple of runs of the whole
show before the week was out. In between we were taken
off by members of the production team (musical directors,
directors, choreographers) to concentrate on and re-work
sections where necessary. Changes were made, scenes and
numbers re-rehearsed and gradually everything began to slot
back into place.
Speeches were made after the final run on Friday afternoon by
Andrew (LW) and Jeremy (director) congratulating everyone
involved for creating this piece of theatre which we should all
be so proud of. But it doesn’t all end here. Now it’s time to
start the technical rehearsals on stage at the Palladium, a place
that is going to be my second home for the next 12 months.
So I’m afraid that’s it from me. I need to get my head down and
prepare for a whirlwind of a year. I hope you have enjoyed this
sneak-peek behind the scenes of our rehearsals.
8
Curriculum Links: BTEC Performing Arts/Vocational GCSE Drama/Expressive Arts

Who’s Who Behind The Scenes

Meet Michael Havard-Bilton company’s website and the office IT; so every day brings new
challenges of one kind or another and the diversity of these
Director of Marketing tasks keeps me extremely busy.

I leave my flat at 7.30am and take the tube to work, which By 5.30pm the phones have quietened down, allowing me some
normally takes about 15 minutes, depending on the service. If time to reflect on what has been achieved during the day, and
I’m feeling energetic I’ll take the bus to the Aldwych and then to think ahead to the next. This is a great time for tackling
walk through Covent Garden. paperwork and generally working through some of the more
routine elements of the job, such as clearing invoices, updating
After saying hello to my tropical fish, and making my first coffee the budgets and responding to non-urgent requests. The last
of the day, I’m normally sitting at my desk by 8am and checking thing I do each day is to tidy my desk and jot down a list of
my Inbox; this gives me a good hour of quiet thinking-time things for the following day.
before the phone starts ringing.
I’ll then shut down my PC & Mac, feed the fish, and either head
I get more than the average number of overnight e-mails, for home or an evening out at the theatre.
as I receive all the sales reports from the previous night’s
performances, and the advanced sales reports for forthcoming
performances. A careful scan of these reports helps me focus
the marketing effort accordingly. I make a point of using
spreadsheets for campaign plans, budgets, targets and sales
figures. The effort of updating a cumulative sales spreadsheet,
for example, is amply rewarded by the strategic benefits it
provides in forward planning.

Next, I’ll review our web statistics, looking mainly at numbers

of unique visitors, pages viewed and activity times. Using these
statistics, I can measure the response to promotions; identify
the popularity of particular pages; see which search terms
people are using to find our sites; and find out where in the
world our visitors are based.

Finally, I’ll review the reports from our press agents, who
update us on the press coverage our shows have received; read
any reviews; and check the schedule for that day’s press events.
From 10am the day becomes a whirl of activity. The major
part of my job is creating the Sales, Marketing and PR
campaigns for our productions. As well as our Marketing
Officer, Tom Schoon, we have a great team of people to
assist us: designers, printers, advertising agencies and PR
agencies, all working together to devise the most effective
and cost- efficient campaigns for the various productions we
produce, co-produce and/or manage.
A typical day will include dealing with phone calls and other
immediate demands; responding to urgent e-mails; working
on one of our productions’ websites; dealing with individual
campaign needs, such as Advertising, Online, Outdoor and
Direct Mail; attending a campaign planning meeting with one
of our agencies; brainstorming ideas for new ways to sell our
shows; discussing some element of a campaign with the
producers; participating in a conference call with the
marketing team at one of the touring theatres; instructing
the graphic designers; or copywriting and proof-reading a
new flyer or advert.
As well as running the marketing department, and looking after
The Sound of Music, Flashdance the Musical, Grease, La Cage aux
Folles, and Chicago, I am responsible for DIP’s archives, the
Meet Heather Swinburn
Production Assistant
I came to work at the Really Useful Group just as The
Woman in White was opening on Broadway and things were
gearing up on Evita and The Sound of Music. My colleague
Nicola and I act as a liaison between the creatives, the cast
and the Really Useful team. We book rehearsal rooms, send
out contracts and organise travel arrangements. It’s a bit like
a PA’s job without the secretarial part and is unpredictable
since I’m never sure what I’ll be required to do next. Things
are constantly changing so every day brings new challenges.
The nicest aspect of the job is getting to attend all the run-
throughs and seeing the magic develop on stage after all the
weeks of administrative stress. In the early stages of The
Sound of Music, we were sorting out the script and
organising casting. Castings are fun because you get to spot
talent right at the outset.
You have to be quite a strong character to deal with so
many people during the very stressful process of opening a
production – but I’ve always known this is the job I wanted
to do and haven’t regretted my choice for a moment.

9
Curriculum Links: History/Music/Drama (historical and social context)
Historical Background
The True Story of the von Trapp Family: a Timeline
1880 • Georg von Trapp is born in Zara, Dalmatia, (now
Zadar, Croatia).
1905 • Maria Augusta Kutschera is born on a train en route
to Vienna. Her mother died when she was two years
old, and her father, an engineer, needed to travel for
work, so Maria was raised by cousins, one in particular,
who brought her up to be an atheist and a socialist.
1911 • Georg marries Agathe Whitehead, granddaughter
of the Englishman Robert Whitehead, inventor of the
torpedo.
Rupert von Trapp is born.
1913 • Agathe von Trapp is born.
1914-18 • World War I: Georg serves as a submarine
commander in the Austro-Hungarian Navy, and is
decorated for valour with the title of ‘Ritter’. Georg
moves his family from Pola (now Pula, Croatia) to
Austria during the war.
1914 • Maria von Trapp is born.
1915 • Werner von Trapp is born.
1917 • Hedwig von Trapp is born.
1918 • Austria-Hungary is defeated in World War I. The
empire is broken up, based loosely on national grounds.
Austria is created out of German-speaking areas.
Austria becomes a republic called ‘German Austria’.
As Austria has lost its seaports and its navy,
Captain Georg von Trapp retires.
1919 • Johanna von Trapp is born.
The Versailles Treaty forbids Germany to unite with
Austria to form a super state, which would be too
powerful economically.
September • The Treaty of St Germain sets out the terms
of Austria’s future situation. Austria’s name is changed
to the ‘Republic of Austria’.
1921 • Martina von Trapp is born.
approximately • Maria Kutschera goes to train at the State
Teachers’ College of Progressive Education in Vienna.
During the time she is there, she is drawn into the
church by the music and happens to hear a Jesuit priest,
Father Kronseder, preaching. She talks to him about
his beliefs and this has a profound effect on her. This
religious awakening will shape the rest of her life.
May • Salzburg Plebiscite: Salzburg votes for a union with
Germany, which would be a violation of the Treaties
of Versailles and St Germain. The Allied governments
threaten to intervene, which ends the Austrian
separation movement.
1922 • Agathe von Trapp, Georg’s wife, dies of scarlet
fever. The grieving family sell the estate in Pola, and
move to an estate in Salzburg.
1924 • Maria Kutschera enters Nonnberg Abbey, Salzburg,
as a postulant.
1926 • Maria is sent by the nuns to the von Trapp’s home
to act as a tutor to one of the daughters who is sick,
and unable to attend school.
1927 – November • Maria marries Georg von Trapp,
motivated mainly by the love she feels for the children,
and the advice of the nuns to try to do God’s will. Her
love for Georg will develop later.
1928 • Rosmarie von Trapp is born.
1931 • Eleonore von Trapp is born.
May • Austria’s most important bank fails.
Left:
Maria Augusta Kutschera
Right:
One of the first posters
for the family choir
All family photographs
courtesy of
Johannes von Trapp
1932 • The family, having lost
most of their wealth during the failure of the
bank, decide to turn their hobby of singing into a career,
and begin to tour.
Engelbert Dollfuss of the Christian Social Party becomes
Austrian Chancellor.
1933 – January • Adolf Hitler is appointed German
Chancellor.
July • Germany becomes a one-party state, with Hitler as its
unchallenged dictator.
Continues on page 11
10
Curriculum Links: History/Music/Drama (historical and social context)

The von Trapp family in America after

their first tour there in 1939

From page 10

1934 • In Austria, the Socialist Party and related
organisations are banned. The Dollfuss cabinet approves
a new constitution which ends press freedom and
establishes a one-party system, which is nevertheless
anti-Nazi, known as the ‘Patriotic Front’.
July • Dolfuss is assassinated by Nazi sympathisers who wish
for unification with Germany.
1936 • The von Trapp Family Singers win first place at the
Salzburg Music Festival.
1938 • Dollfuss’s successor, Schuschnigg, maintains a ban on
pro-Hitlerite activities, but is forced to resign on
11 March 1938. German troops then occupy Austria
with no resistance. Austria is renamed ‘Ostmark’, and
placed under the leadership of Seyss-Inquart.
The family realise that they might be in danger because
of their refusal to support the Nazis, who have taken
over control of Austria. They leave, travelling first to
Italy, under the ruse of going on a walking hoilday and
then to tour in America.
1939 • Johannes von Trapp is born.
September • Germany invades Poland, and Britain and
France declare war on Germany.
1942 • The family settle in Stowe, Vermont.
1944 • Maria and her stepdaughters, Agathe, Maria, Hedwig,
Johanna and Martina apply for U.S. citizenship by filing
declarations of intention at the U.S. District Court in
Burlington, Vermont. They will achieve citizenship in
1948.
1945 • The Second World War ends.
1947 • Georg von Trapp dies.
1949 • Maria’s book, The Story of the von Trapp Family
Singers, is published.

After you have seen the play, discuss:

1 How has the true story of the von Trapps been adapted to fit into one evening of stage time?
2 What are the similarities and differences?
3 Why do you think these choices were made?
4 The real von Trapp children are represented in the play under different names and their ages
were changed. Use the cast list in the programme and the information in the Timeline to
guess who is based on whom. (See below for the answers!)

Brigitta is based on Hedwig von Trapp, Martha is based on Johanna von Trapp, Gretl is based on Martina von Trapp.
Answers to question 4: Liesl is based on Agathe von Trapp, Frederick is based on Rupert von Trapp, Louisa is based on Maria von Trapp, Kurt is based on Werner von Trapp.

11
Curriculum Links: History/Music/Drama (historical and social context)

Historical Background
What Happened Next to the von Trapp Family?
In 1947, Maria founded the Trapp Family Music Camp in
Stowe, Vermont, with the aim of introducing music to
American families. As the camp became more and more
popular, it was necessary to provide overnight lodging and, in
the next few years, the accommodation was expanded, with
the Trapp Family Lodge, a ski and holiday village, opening to
guests in 1950.
In 1956, when Maria and some of her children were touring
Australia, they visited the home of Archbishop Carboni, who
was in charge of overseeing missionary work in the South
Pacific. He informed the family that, should they ever give up
their singing careers, they would be welcome to return to
become missionaries in the South Pacific.
In 1957, the von Trapp family gave up the Trapp Family
Music Camp and their music tours. Many of the children
were pursuing their own interests by then, and the singing
group had included non-family members for some time. With
touring at an end, Maria von Trapp travelled with three of
the children, Maria, Johannes and Rosmarie, and with Father
Wasner, who had acted as the group’s musical director, to
Papua New Guinea to become missionary workers. Johannes
helped to build two schoolhouses and a church, Rosmarie and
Maria taught, while Maria von Trapp (the elder) and Father
Wasner did some work for the Archbishop, travelling for a
year through the different islands, observing and reporting the
needs of the people, as was later described in Maria: My Own
story (published 1972). After her year of missionary work,
Maria returned to Stowe, and concentrated on running and
expanding the Trapp Family Lodge.
She continued to be involved in the running of the Lodge
until her death in 1987. In 1980, the lodge burnt to the
ground in a fire that resulted in one death and a number
of injuries. The family rebuilt the lodge within three years,
making it three times the size of the original, and it is still
operating today, under the management of Johannes von
Trapp, Maria’s youngest child, who is its president.
Meanwhile, a younger generation of von Trapps – Maria’s
great grandchildren – are now giving musical tours.
Justin (11), Amanda (15), Melanie (16) and Sofia (18) are
following in the footsteps of their grandfather, Werner von
Trapp, and perform classical music, folk songs and, naturally,
songs from The Sound of Music.

Did you know?

The Trapp family motto is Nec Aspera Terrent,

which is Latin for ‘be not terrified by adversity’.
Maria said that she always knew everything would turn out all right:
‘You just have to find out the will of God and do it.’

12
 Curriculum Links: Music/BTEC Performing Arts/Drama/Expressive Arts

Historical Background
The Journey of Maria’s Story

Maria von Trapp’s Paramount Pictures approaches

Wolfgang Reinhardt makes a film in
book The Story of film director Vincent J Donehue,
German, Die Trapp-Familie, and a sequel
the von Trapp Family with a view to re-making the
Die Trapp-Familie in Amerika (1958),
Singers published in German films in America,
Maria unwittingly signs away all film
1949 starring Audrey Hepburn
rights, and only receives $9,000

Initially intending to feature songs

Donehue approaches his friend Mary
from the von Trapp’s repertoire, the
Martin who, together with her husband, the
playwriting team of Russell Crouse
Broadway producer Richard Halliday, sees
and Howard Lindsay begin working on
the potential of making a stage musical from
the script
the story, with Mary herself playing Maria
Mary Martin wants a new
song for the show and asks
her friends Richard Rodgers
(composer) and Not content with On 16 November 1959, The Sound of
Oscar Hammerstein writing one song Music opens on Broadway, starring
(lyricist) to come up with attached to someone Mary Martin as Maria with Rodgers’s
something else’s project, the music, Hammerstein’s song lyrics and
pair suggest writing the book (spoken script) by Crouse
a completely new and Lindsay
musical!
As Halliday had purchased the rights from
the German filmmakers, Maria von Trapp
The musical was Rodgers and Hammerstein’s was eventually paid three-eighths of one per
biggest success, it ran for 1,443 cent of the royalties, although there was no
performances on Broadway, winning six legal obligation to pay her anything. She also
Tony Awards including Best Musical. Over assisted in the direction of the play
three million albums were also sold

In June 1960, Twentieth Century Fox bought

the rights to The Sound of Music,
on condition that they would not release
the film version until 1964, or until after the
Broadway musical had closed
The movie, which was partly filmed in
Salzburg, Austria, and starred Julie Andrews
as Maria, had its world premiere at the
Rivoli Theatre in New York on
2 March 1965, and broke all previous box
office records. It won five Oscars in 1966,
including Best Picture

The legend of Maria’s story lives on in countless versions of the play, translated into many
languages, and shared with audiences across the world. The film has been enjoyed by millions
and has a cult following in its ‘Sing-a Long’ version. Andrew Lloyd Webber and David Ian are
delighted to be able bring the magic of a live production to a new audience

13
Curriculum Links: Music/Dance/Literacy/Art/PSHE
Designed for KS2 – can be easily adapted to suit other age groups

Follow up Activity
My Favourite Things

Resources
• Cast recording of The Sound of Music, available from www.thesoundofmusictour.com
(using an interactive whiteboard you can play an extract from the song directly from the website)
• Richard Rodgers/Oscar Hammerstein: The Sound Of Music – Vocal Selections
• plasticine, old magazines, small cardboard boxes or shoe boxes
• optional: video camera and editing software

Literacy
Make two lists
using the five senses,
of things that make
you happy and sad
Use the two lists
Music as a starting point
Learn the song for a poem about
‘My Favorite Things’ how Favourite
Things can cheer
us up

Listen to
‘My
Dance Favorite More able
students could try
Listen carefully to Things’ to adopt the rhyme
the song, add actions scheme from
and plan your own Oscar Hammerstein’s
choreography original lyric

Art Fill or decorate

Using plasticine, the box with your
make a figure of an favourite things, cut out
imaginary person from magazines.
and create a ‘home’ You could then film
for them a short animation

PSHE/emotional literacy: these activities will generate discussion about what makes us happy and how we cope when
things are bad. It is important that the plasticine figure in the art activity does not represent the child directly, it is a third
person who can take on their emotions if necessary. Children may begin to share personal stories which will need to be
handled with sensitivity; it may be a good idea to follow the activity with circle time.

14
Curriculum Links: Textiles, Art and Design
Can be easily adapted to suit different age groups

Follow up Activity
Design Your Own Costume

Maria thought it a waste to throw away the curtains when she needed a new dress and the children needed
brighter play clothes. Can you design a traditional Austrian dress or shorts (called Lederhosen) based on a
curtain fabric?

1 Design your fabric. You could copy some curtains from home or, like our designer Robert Jones, you might
like to create a new pattern.
2 Draw your basic pattern on graph paper or on the computer.
3 Decide how your image repeats; if you do this on the computer you can cut and paste to repeat your
pattern. It may repeat diagonally or in straight lines; you decide which looks better.
4 Draw or cut and stick your fabric pattern on to the outline of the boy or girl figures (don’t forget to scale it
down) to give an impression of how your curtain material will look as a dress fabric.

Figures based on costume designs by Robert Jones

15
Curriculum links: Drama, music, dance, developing literacy

Follow up Activity
Writing About the Play 1

Fill in the gaps:

On we went to see a production of The Sound of Music at

When I was waiting for the play to begin I noticed

My favourite character was , played by

What I liked about this character was

My favourite scene was

The colours used in this scene were
The colours made me think of

The song that stayed in my head after the show was

The reason I remember that song is

This is a drawing of my favourite moment in the play, showing the characters in their costumes and the set
they are performing on:

16
Curriculum Links: A/AS/GCSE level • Drama/Performing Arts

Follow up Activity
Writing About the Play 2
Why does a director make certain choices? Watch carefully
and write notes at the interval, or after the play. What do
you see and hear on the stage and in the audience, when
you are waiting for the play to begin? Watch carefully during
the play, and write notes at the interval, or after the play.
We would ask that you do not write notes during the
performance. To work out what effects are being created
in the production, ask yourself these practical questions and
think about why these choices have been made:

The Set
• what is your first impression of what you see?
• what shapes, levels and colours are being used?
• how does the set hide or reveal actors?
• how are the different locations and scenes in the play
demonstrated?

Costume
• what colours and styles are being used?
• what impression do they give about the historical period
and the social class of the characters?
• compare different costumes, for example Maria’s
home-made dresses with the Baroness’s high fashion.
What story do the costumes tell?

Lighting
• are we inside or outside?
• what colours and shades of colour are being used to
create time of day, location or weather?
• what levels of brightness are being used and why?
• think about angles of light, who is well lit and who is in
shadow?
• when do the lights change?
• what is atmosphere and what emotions are suggested by
the lighting?

The Performers
• how does each actor create their character through the
way they move?
• how effective is the transition from speech to song – can
you give an example of a point in the play where this
happens?
• how do the performers use the set?
• how do the performers relate to the audience – and
when does this change?
• which performances do you find the most convincing?
Why? Which performances do you find less convincing?
Why?

And lastly but most importantly: what does The Sound of

Music make you think, feel and want to talk about?

17
 Glossary
Actor
Person who acts/portrays a character in a play or film –
in musicals, actors must also be able to sing and dance to a
high standard.
Blocking
A working out, in the early stage of rehearsal, of where the
actors will move on stage. The blocking will be fixed before
the technical rehearsals begin.
The Book
1 The spoken text of a musical.
2 The stage manager’s copy of the script – used to mark
the blocking and technical cues, as in ‘the deputy stage
manager: on the book’.
Choreographer
Person who creates dance compositions by planning and
arranging dance movements and patterns.
Composer
Person who writes and arranges tunes and songs.
Designer
Person who creates the ‘look’ of a play, makes decisions
about the shape of the set, colour schemes and costumes.
Director
Person who has overall responsibility for translating a
writer’s words from the page to the stage or into film – has
overall responsibility for integrating all the creative elements
of a production – acting, design, choreography, lighting,
sound.
Ensemble
Group of supporting performers (actors, dancers, singers) –
often understudies are drawn from this group.
Libretto
The printed text of a musical, both spoken text and lyrics as
per performance.
Lyrics
The words of a song.
Producer
The person who oversees the financial and administrative
aspects of a play or film, responsible for raising money,
hiring a creative team and having overall supervision for all
aspects of production, marketing and planning.
Storyboard
A series of pictures, like a comic strip, drawn to depict
individual scenes or, in film, individual shots – a useful tool
in planning a production.
Swing
Understudies (in musical theatre) – must be able, at short
notice, to take over another performer’s role, often
covering several roles or members of the ensemble.
TRuck
A platform on wheels – pieces of scenery are built onto trucks
to make them easier to slide on, off or around the stage.
Travelator
Like a moving pavement in an airport, a travelator is a
motorised horizontally-moving belt at stage level used for
moving scenery or actors on/off stage. It can be used to
make actors look as if they are walking or running over a
distance.
Understudy
An actor who is able to take over from another actor at
short notice.
18
 The Producers
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber is the composer of The Likes of Us,
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Jesus Christ Superstar,
By Jeeves, Evita, Variations and Tell Me on a Sunday later combined
as Song and Dance, Cats, Starlight Express, The Phantom of the Opera,
Aspects of Love, Sunset Boulevard, Whistle Down the Wind, The
Beautiful Game and The Woman in White. He composed the film
scores of Gumshoe and The Odessa File, and a setting of the Latin
requiem mass Requiem.
In 2004 he produced a film version of The Phantom of the Opera,
directed by Joel Schumacher and in 2010 he will premiere Love
Never Dies, his sequel to The Phantom of the Opera, which will be
directed by the award-winning director Jack O’Brien.
In 2006 he oversaw a new production of Evita in London, a unique
version of The Phantom of the Opera in Las Vegas and pioneered
television casting for musical theatre with the hit BBC series
How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?, which searched for a
Maria in The Sound of Music. The series won an International
Emmy.
He repeated his success with Any Dream Will Do, which cast the
title role of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and
in 2008 he cast the musical Oliver! for the BBC. In January this
year he launched a new BBC TV series Your Country Needs You
to create the UK entry for the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest.
His awards include seven Tonys, three Grammys including Best
Contemporary Classical Composition for Requiem, seven
Oliviers, a Golden Globe, an Oscar, two International Emmys,
the Praemium Imperiale, the Richard Rodgers Award for
Excellence in Musical Theatre and the Kennedy Center Honor.
He currently owns seven London theatres including the Theatre
Royal Drury Lane and the London Palladium. He was knighted in
1992 and created an honorary life peer in 1997.
The Really Useful Theatre Company
The Really Useful Theatre Company has produced Starlight
Express, Daisy Pulls It Off (Olivier Award - Comedy of the Year),
The Hired Man, Lend Me a Tenor, Aspects of Love, Joseph and the
Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Sunset Boulevard, By Jeeves, Jesus
Christ Superstar, Whistle Down the Wind, The Beautiful Game,
Bombay Dreams and Evita.
The company co-produced Jeeves Takes Charge, Cats (Olivier
Award - Musical of the Year), Song and Dance, On Your Toes, Café
Puccini, The Phantom of the Opera (Olivier Award - Musical of the
Year), La Bête (Olivier Award - Comedy of the Year), The Woman
in White, Priscilla Queen of the Desert the Musical and the recent
West End revivals of Daisy Pulls It Off, Tell Me on a Sunday, The
Sound of Music and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
On Broadway its American counterpart has produced and/or
co-produced the Tony Award-winning productions of The Woman
in White, Cats (and US tours), Starlight Express, Song and Dance,
David IAN / DAVID IAN PRODUCTIONS
David Ian began his theatrical career as a performer in musicals
such as The Rocky Horror Show, Time, Joseph and the Amazing
Technicolor Dreamcoat and The Pirates of Penzance. He recently
appeared on the TV casting programmes How Do You Solve a
Problem Like Maria? and Grease Is the Word in the UK and
You’re the One That I Want for NBC in the United States.
He is a regular panellist on Channel 5’s The Wright Stuff.
David formed his first production company with fellow actor
Paul Nicholas in 1991. Paul Nicholas and David Ian Associates
co-produced tours of Jesus Christ Superstar, The Pirates of Penzance,
Singin’ in the Rain and Ain’t Misbehavin’ at the Lyric Theatre, London.
Together with legendary impresario Robert Stigwood, they
produced Saturday Night Fever and Grease in the West End. Grease
is still currently at the Piccadilly Theatre, London and on tour in
the United States following a successful Broadway run.
Other shows that David has produced include: West End: The King
and I (London Palladium); Defending the Caveman (Apollo); Daisy
Pulls It Off (Lyric); Anything Goes (Theatre Royal Drury Lane); The
Producers (Theatre Royal Drury Lane); Guys and Dolls (Piccadilly).
UK tours: Dr Dolittle, The King and I, West Side Story, Cats, Chicago,
Starlight Express, My Fair Lady, The New Statesman, The Producers.
US: My Fair Lady (tour); The Phantom of the Opera (Las Vegas).
Australia: Happy Days, Spamalot, Grease.
David produced the Laurence Olivier Awards for the Society of
London Theatres from 1996-1999. He was Chairman of Global
Theatre for Live Nation until 2007.
David Ian Productions was formed in 2006 and is based in
London’s Covent Garden. Productions include: The Sound of
Music (London Palladium, Toronto and UK tour); La Cage aux
Folles (Playhouse, London); Gypsy (St James Theatre, Broadway);
Flashdance (UK tour); Chicago (UK tour); Cats (Germany);
Britain’s Got Talent (arena tour, UK). In 2008 DIP, together with
Arlene Phillips, Universal and ITV Productions, produced a new
musical drama series for ITV 1 called Britannia High, with music
by Gary Barlow
The Phantom of the Opera (and US tours), Shirley Valentine, Lend Me
a Tenor and Aspects of Love. Other productions include: La Bête
(Broadway); Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Los
Angeles, Broadway and US tour); The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber
(US tour); Sunset Boulevard (Los Angeles, New York and US
tour); Whistle Down the Wind (Washington); Jesus Christ Superstar
(Broadway); By Jeeves (Broadway); Phantom - The Las Vegas
Spectacular (Venetian) and The Sound of Music (Toronto).
The Really Useful Theatre Company is a wholly-owned subsidiary
of the Really Useful Group, which is actively involved throughout
the world in theatre and concert production, recording,
merchandising, music publishing, television, film and video.
The group co-owns the Adelphi Theatre and owns six theatres in
the West End including the world famous Theatre Royal Drury
Lane and the London Palladium.
19
BibliograpHY/Further Resources and Information
Websites
www.thesoundofmusictour.com • everything you need
to know about the current production of The Sound of Music
www.reallyuseful.com • official website of
Andrew Lloyd Webber’s company, with links to current
shows, company history, news and merchandising
www.davidianproductions.com • official website
of David Ian’s company, with links to current
shows, company history and news
www.rnh.com/org • The Rodgers and Hammerstein
Organization
www.trappfamily.com • for information about the real
von Trapp family
Books
The Companion to The Sound of Music by Laurence Maslon,
Pavilion (2006)
The Sound of Music Vocal Selections by Rodgers and
Hammerstein, Music Sales Ltd (2004)
The Movie by The Trapp Family Lodge
The Story of Maria Kutschera von Trapp by The Trapp Family
Lodge
The Story of the Trapp Family Singers by
Maria Augusta von Trapp
To the Last Salute: Memories of an Austrian U-Boat Commander
by Georg von Trapp (Author), Elizabeth M. Campbell
(Translator), University of Nebraska Press (2007)
The Cambridge Companion to the Musical (Cambridge
Companions to Music), by William A Everett (Editor),
Paul Laird (Editor), Cambridge University Press (2002)
CDs
The Sound of Music (full cast recording, London 2006)
available from www.soundofmusiclondon.com
The History of the Musical by Richard Fawkes (Author),
Kim Criswell (Narrator), Naxos AudioBooks (2001)
DVDs
The Sound of Music (1965) director Robert Wise, starring
Julie Andrews (20th Century Fox Home Entertainment)
Education Pack Credits
Created by Helen Cadbury
Additional Research by Helen Kedge
The Sound of Music 2006-07 Production Photography by
Tristram Kenton and Ralf Brinkhoff/Mögenburg
Designed by Dewynters
The Sound of Music Logo Designed by Dewynters
© DIP/RUG 2006
This education pack has been designed so that individual
pages may be printed off by teachers/group leaders
for individual use within the class room. Any further
distribution or reproduction of the text and images
contained within it is prohibited.
All photographs are of the 2006 London Palladium
production
The Sound of Music Education Pack © DIP/RUG 2009
www.thesoundofmusictour.com
For more information contact:
The Marketing Department
David Ian Productions Ltd
3rd Floor, 33 Henrietta Street, London WC2E 8NA
+44(0) 20 7257 6380
Stock and amateur rights for THE SOUND OF MUSIC
are represented in the United Kingdom, Eire and throughout
Europe by Josef Weinberger Ltd.
www.josef-weinberger.com
We are always looking for boys and girls to play the
Von Trapp children.
If you are interested please contact Joanne Hawes at
jo.hawes@virgin.net
20