The Sound of Music at Resorts World Manila

The show was awesome!

I've seen The Sound of Music several times already, both onstage and in film (most of the time in film), but the presentation at Resorts World Manila was different.

The production attempted to bring the audience right where the scenes happened through computer-generated imagery: over the hills, under the trees, by the fountain... These animated backdrops were projected via the big screen behind the set. On some occasions, the animation blended right into the scene. As the nuns ponder how to hold a moonbeam in their hands, water continuously flowed at the fountain in the abbey's garden. While Captain von Trapp, Elsa, and Max were talking in the gardens, the view of the mountains and the gardens were kept alive by the fountain and the flight of birds.

However, there were some scenes where the animated backdrop did not work as well as they should, in my opinion. In particular, these are the scenes where the pixels of the images are most pronounced because the backdrops are moving; such as the panning shots of the Alps as Maria sings about the hills being alive thanks to the sound of music or the shots of the town and the cobblestone road leading to the von Trapp property. The movement of the backdrops was quite disconcerting because they reminded me of video games. But that's just me.

Despite the distractions from the backdrop, I enjoyed watching the performances of all the actors in the play. Audie Gemora and Joanna Ampil led the cast during the January 22 matinee as Captain von Trapp and Maria. The little girl who played Gretl was so cute! Normally, I'd find the minor characters forgettable but comedian Leo Martinez stole the spotlight from the others in his scenes as Max Detweiler. It's the first time I've seen him in theater.

Then there's the musicians. The orchestra was off-stage but the production people opted to show it via screens on stage left and stage right. The audience then knew that they're watching a musical with live accompaniment. Plus, focusing on the orchestra was a good way of diverting the audience's attention from the stage during scene changes.

As promised by Carl, the guy who assisted my aunt and me when we bought tickets, there are no bad seats in the house. Indeed, the view from the balcony is good (unlike in other theaters where the performers are tiny when seen from the balcony) and I bet the seats right up front are even better.

I'm so glad I caught The Sound of Music at Resorts World Manila before it ends its run on February 12, 2012.