Chrysler Hall, Norfolk
Rodgers & Hammerstein's The Sound of Music Sing-A-Long
Sunday 2:30 PM
April 6, 2025
Date
Sunday, April 6, 2025 2:30 PM
Location
Chrysler Hall, Norfolk
Shelly Milam-Ratliff, Moderator
Shelly Milam-Ratliff is the Vocal Music Department Chair at the Governor’s School for the Arts in Norfolk where she has taught for 15 years. She delights in fostering a love for opera and creating safe spaces for students to find their voices, both literally and figuratively. Operatic role highlights include Pamina in Die Zauberflӧte, Fiordiligi in Così fan tutte, Susanna in Le Nozze di Figaro, Rose Maurrant in Street Scene, the title role of Suor Angelica, and the musical theater roles of Anna from The King and I, Rapunzel in Into the Woods, and Rosa Bud in The Mystery of Edwin Drood. She has found that the only thing she artistically loves more than performing in a show is directing a show. She has had the opportunity to direct Offenbach’s Orpheus in the Underworld, Handel’s Alcina, Humperdink’s Hansel and Gretel, Viardot’s Cendrillon, Menotti’s The Old Maid and the Thief and Amahl and the Night Visitors, Gilbert and Sullivan’s Trial By Jury, Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas, Mozart’s The Impresario, and Brundibar by Krása. She happily lives in Chesapeake with her husband, three daughters, and dog, Kenobi.
Costume Contest Ideas
Doors open at 2 PM
Pre-show activities and costume contest begin at 2:30 PM, film at 3 PM
Character Costumes
- Maria (Julie Andrews): She has several costume changes, including her novice habit, two traveling costumes, and her wedding dress. Get creative with accessories!
- Baroness Elsa Schrader (Eleanor Parker): Check out your local thrift shop, or ask a friend or relative for a suitably dated—but elegant and aristocratic—outfit.
- Captain Von Trapp (Christopher Plummer): The Captain has three costume changes in the movie: a suit, a formal military uniform, and a crested flying suit.
- Nun or Mother Superior: Why not represent the Abbey and dress up as a nun, all the while singing “How Do you Solve a Problem Like Maria?”
- The children: The possibilities are endless! Costumes range from dirndl dresses and lederhosen, to school uniforms, to the curtain material Maria used to make playclothes.
Ideas from Songs!
There are tons of fun things from these songs that can be made at home or bought . . .
Do-Re-Mi
- Tea with jam and bread: Have a basket with a packet of tea, a loaf of bread, and a jar of jam. Or you and two friends can dress up as these items!
- Ray, a drop of golden sun: Wear a gold or yellow outfit.
- The ideas don't stop there: Do, a dear, A long, long way to RUN, A needle pulling thread, Follow So, Then come back to Do.
The Lonely Goatherd
- Puppets: You can dress up as one of the marionettes in the “Lonely Goatherd” puppet show. Attach some strings from your hands up to two pieces of wood. The big question would be: who will control the strings?
- A goat: Grab some white wooly fabric and make yourself some horns out of cardboard or cloth.
- A prince: “On the bridge of a castle mote heard . . .” Everyone wants to be a prince! Look at traditional Austrian outfits for an authentic feel; and, to throw people off a bit, wear a crown.
- Little girl in a pale pink coat: How simple is this idea, and it'll keep the audience guessing. Subtle.
My Favorite Things
There are tons of ideas from this song that can be made at home or bought . . .
- Brown paper package tied up with strings: Find a large roll of brown paper and tie it around you with some string. Make sure you can still move around easily and sit down comfortably. Although you may get some stares if you crinkle too much during the show.
- Cream-colored pony: This would be a fun team effort with pals.
- Goose: Be one of the “wild geese that fly with the moon on their wings . . .”
- Girl in a white dress with a blue satin sash: This is another easy and cute idea. But it turns into something extra fun if you are a guy in drag.
- Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes: Just find some light blue clothing and attach your favorite snowflake pattern.
- And it doesn't stop there! Just listen to the song for some of your own ideas.
General Ideas
- A plumber (as in Christopher Plummer): Wear a boiler suit and carry a wrench/spanner and tool bag.
- A pair of curtains: Complete with curtain rod across your shoulders.
- The Alps: Covered in snow. Grab some paper maché, or draw on a set of t-shirts! Could get messy!
- Jar of spiders: Preferably plastic ones! (Maria: “How did you ever climb up there?” Liesl: “It's how we always got into this room to play tricks on the governess. Louisa can make it with a whole jar of spiders in her hand.”)
- Austrian or German traditional outfits: Put on your shorts and lederhosen for an authentic look.
Not Into Costumes?
If dressing up isn't your thing, you can always go as “Mi, a name I call myself.”