‘The Sound of Music’ comes to life in Leavenworth

  • By Sally Birks Herald Writer
  • Thursday, August 1, 2013 12:32pm
  • Life

LEAVENWORTH — The warm nighttime breeze carries a sweet scent from the sugar pines and the evening sky turns dusky navy blue as the hills around this alpen village come alive with the sound of music.

Yes, the real “Sound of Music,” the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical story of the Austrian von Trapp family that has captivated audiences for more than 50 years as a play and then as a movie.

This is the 19th year that the Leavenworth Summer Theater has presented “The Sound of Music” in its woodsy outdoor amphitheater high on Ski Hill park just north of the town.

Audience members are greeted and seated by the “nuns” from the abbey.

The trumpeting of an alpenhorn, spotlighted on a hill above the stage and echoing off the surrounding mountains, signals the opening of the play.

After the overture by the 10-piece orchestra, the stage lights come up on the slick new turntable set that allows for easy scene changes, and the nuns in the Nonnberg Abbey begin the story of “How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria.”

Maria, played by Jenness Klein-Schrenzel, is the spirited young postulant sent off to learn about life outside the convent walls as a governess to the seven children of a strict Austrian navy captain.

Klein-Schrenzel has big shoes to fill in the role so identified with Julie Andrews, but her lilting voice and engaging stage presence are more than up to the challenge in this professional production.

Many of the actors and chilren as well as the musicians and stage crew are from the Leavenworth area.

College students from Central Washington University, the University of Washington, Whitworth University, the University of Northern Colorado and Pepperdine University fill in the cast and crew.

And Klein-Schrenzel and her husband, Julian Schrenzel, who plays Captain Georg von Trapp, are from the Seattle area.

As the play progresses through the charming musical numbers by the children and the night sky grows darker, we’re distracted (only momentarily) by the millions of stars overhead.

The wind picks up, rustling the trees, as if on cue as the play reaches its dramatic climax when the Trapp family bids “So Long, Farewell” to their beloved Austria now occupied by Germans.

In addition to presenting “The Sound of Music” every year in this perfect setting, the Leavenworth Summer Theater company does two other plays every summer and another tradition, “It’s a Wonderful Life,” during the holidays.

“Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” and “Footloose” continue along with “The Sound of Music” through August on Tuesdays through Saturdays, with the only Sunday performance of “The Sound of Music” on Sept. 1.

“Joseph” is performed at Hatchery Park and “Footloose” is on the Festhalle Theater stage in downtown Leavenworth. “It’s a Wonderful Life” will also play at FestHall Theater on three weekends in December.

Book early because tickets go fast.

The two-hour hop over Stevens Pass to this Bavarian village is beautiful any time of the year, and glorious in summer.

If you don’t want to drive, however, Amtrak now stops in Leavenworth. And of course there are inns and motels and plenty of German vittles.

If you go

Leavenworth Ski Hill Amphitheater: 10698 Ski Hill Drive

Hatchery Park Amphitheater: 7919 E. Leavenworth Road

Leavenworth FestHalle Theater: 1001 Front St.

Parking: Free at all the venues. There’s a shuttle from the parking area to the Ski Hill amphitheater if needed.

Reserved tickets: $30, $25 and $14. Call the box office at 509-548-2000, 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

Information: www.leavenworthsummertheater.org

Accomodations: Leavenworth Chamber of Commerce has information at www.leavenworth.org.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Brandon Hailey of Cytrus, center, plays the saxophone during a headlining show at Madam Lou’s on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lynnwood-based funk octet Cytrus has the juice

Resilience and brotherhood take center stage with ‘friends-first’ band.

FILE - In this April 11, 2014 file photo, Neko Case performs at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. Fire investigators are looking for the cause of a fire on Monday, Sept. 18, 2017, that heavily damaged Case’s 225-year-old Vermont home. There were no injuries, though a barn was destroyed. It took firefighters two hours to extinguish the blaze. (Photo by Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Singer-songwriter Neko Case, an indie music icon from Tacoma, performs Sunday in Edmonds.

Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli
Tangier’s market boasts piles of fruits, veggies, and olives, countless varieties of bread, and nonperishables, like clothing and electronics.
Rick Steves on the cultural kaleidoscope of Tangier in Morocco

Walking through the city, I think to myself, “How could anyone be in southern Spain — so close — and not hop over to experience this wonderland?”

chris elliott.
Vrbo promised to cover her rental bill in Hawaii, so why won’t it?

When Cheryl Mander’s Vrbo rental in Hawaii is uninhabitable, the rental platform agrees to cover her new accommodations. But then it backs out. What happened?

The Moonlight Swing Orchestra will play classic sounds of the Big Band Era on April 21 in Everett. (submitted photo)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Relive the Big Band Era at the Port Gardner Music Society’s final concert of the season in Everett.

2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD (Honda)
2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD

Honda cedes big boy pickup trucks to the likes of Ford, Dodge… Continue reading

Would you want to give something as elaborate as this a name as mundane as “bread box”? A French Provincial piece practically demands the French name panetiere.
A panetiere isn’t your modern bread box. It’s a treasure of French culture

This elaborately carved French antique may be old, but it’s still capable of keeping its leavened contents perfectly fresh.

(Judy Newton / Great Plant Picks)
Great Plant Pick: Mouse plant

What: Arisarum proboscideum, also known as mouse plant, is an herbaceous woodland… Continue reading

Bright green Japanese maple leaves are illuminated by spring sunlight. (Getty Images)
Confessions of a ‘plantophile’: I’m a bit of a junky for Japanese maples

In fact, my addiction to these glorious, all-season specimens seems to be contagious. Fortunately, there’s no known cure.

2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited (Hyundai)
2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited

The 2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited is a sporty, all-electric, all-wheel drive sedan that will quickly win your heart.

The 2024 Dodge Hornet R/T hybrid’s face has the twin red lines signifying the brand’s focus on performance. (Dodge)
2024 Hornet R/T is first electrified performance vehicle from Dodge

The all-new compact SUV travels 32 miles on pure electric power, and up to 360 miles in hybrid mode.

Don’t blow a bundle on glass supposedly made by the Henry William Stiegel

Why? Faked signatures, reused molds and imitated styles can make it unclear who actually made any given piece of glass.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.