UWG Theatre Breathes New Life into a Beloved Classic

Watching a production come to life on stage is an experience deeply appreciated by individuals who hold a passionate respect for art, storytelling and performance. The University of West Georgia’s Theatre Department plans to both entertain and inspire the community with its production of The Sound of Music on April 24-26 at 7:30 p.m. and April 26-27 at 2:00 p.m.

The Sound of Music is a musical following a woman named Maria who becomes a governess for seven children and their widowed father, Captain Von Trapp. She slowly but surely gains the love and trust of the children, but matters become complicated as Maria and Captain Von Trapp begin to develop feelings for one another.

“The music is actually what brings the family together,” said Austin Sharpe, an actor in The Sound of Music. “Maria, in order to get the kids to trust her, starts teaching them all these songs. You find out through the older kids that the captain also used to love singing. However, whenever his wife died, he pretty much banned singing and music altogether. But as he starts to open his heart up and become more vulnerable, you can hear him singing more and more and building that connection with his children.”

Sharpe is honored to contribute to the telling of this story with his role as Butler Franz in the production. Butler Franz is portrayed as loyal to the captain in the beginning of the show, but it is soon revealed that he has an alliance to the Nazi party, which creates a tension in the household.

“It’s definitely a different role for me, I can’t say I’ve played anything quite like it. But it’s interesting because throughout theatre classes we’re told you cannot judge your character,” said Sharpe. “Instead you have to find the reasonings of ‘why.’ So I’m sitting there thinking ‘What happened in his childhood?’ or ‘What was he promised that made him want to join this side and essentially do these awful, terrible things?’ It’s been a bit of a challenge to say the least but I get to interact with all of the children a bunch.”

Sharpe says having children in the production has been enjoyable for all of the cast and crew.

“Having been in Cinderella as well, where we also worked with children in the community, they are just the sometimes funniest, cutest, sweetest things,” said Sharpe. “Other times, they’re hyper and full of energy and we need to calm them down a bit. But I think by partnering with the children in the community, it really just brings together that sense of family.”

The children in the production also bring nostalgia and remembrance of doing theatre at a younger age, which has served as a humbling and heartwarming reminder.

“I started doing theatre in second grade,” said Sharpe. “Seeing them experience all of these things for the first time kind of brings back that sense of wonder and joy that sometimes you don’t even realize that you’ve lost.”

In addition to the main cast and crew of The Sound of Music, Sharpe also seeks to recognize the hard work of the understudies in the production as well.

“It’s hard being an understudy because you don’t always get all of the credit that the main cast gets,” said Sharpe. “You’re there as kind of a shoe-in, but you still have to learn everything. So having them just be there and supporting and always having such a positive attitude really helps all of us.

Sharpe states the UWG theatre program as a whole has helped nurture his talent and passion in meaningful ways, and The Sound of Music is just one example of that.

“I love being on the stage and performing and bringing these characters to life,” said Sharpe. “There’s so much that goes into theatre to create a beautiful performance. There’s a lot of research, a lot of context, a lot of experimenting and play. It’s building a show. It’s that sense of community and family you create with those around you. You have to be able to build those connections with people. It’s a little scary sometimes, but I know that if I’m doing what I love, it can’t go wrong.”