The Sound of Music: The Complete Book and Lyrics of the Broadway Musical (Applause Libretto Library)

While searching for the stage script and lyrics for "Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella" (which I never did find); I "accidentally found" this stage script for "The Sound Of Music." I decided to purchase it and I'm very glad I did. I wish this were a hardcover edition, but BRAVO to Applause Books, nevertheless, for publishing a handsome and sturdy Paperback edition. Yes, this is the stage script of Rodgers and Hammerstein's critically reviled but universally adored final musical. This is the script as performed by the Original Broadway Cast in 1959. So don't look for the songs "I Have Confidence" and "Something Good." Those were written for the 1965 movie version and sometimes interpolated into later stage revivals. The reader or "The Sound Of Music" fan will find a few surprises inside, however. Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse were the playwrights who transformed the Trapp Family Saga into "The Sound Of Music": A Musical Fairy Tale." Rodgers and Hammerstein provided the beloved songs we now know by heart. But the atmosphere was bittersweet (Hammerstein was dying of cancer and passed away six months after the Broadway Premiere) and the script became bittersweet. Timothy Crouse, Russel's son, provides a detailed introduction; recalling his emotional reaction after reading the script for the first time; months before anyone else saw the show or heard the songs on stage. Oddly, Timothy never mentions Mary Martin, the star the show was created for in the first place, at all.Timothy does not care for the 1965 movie version. He has a point there; since Ernest Lehman's screenplay re-arranges and in several instances removes a lot of the hard work his father and the rest of the creative team did for the stage play. In the stage play, the political threat of the Nazis is much more pronounced and front and center. The Captain and Elsa break up because she thinks the Nazis should be accomodated; and then they will likely disappear. In the movie, Elsa (portrayed in particularly abrasive- annoying fashion by Eleanor Parker) is a Wicked Witch; jealous of perky nun-governess Maria (played by a perfectly cast Julie Andrews). The movie removes the two cynical songs for Max and Elsa; "How Can Love Survive?" and "No Way To Stop It"; the two songs which balanced out the sticky-sweet elements of the plot. With Lehman's Screenplay removing anything cynical and bittersweet, director Robert Wise was left with merely sweetness and light. Wise and his Director of Photography Ted McCord managed to create a movie that is visually stunning and often breath-taking. The movie also features an exuberant performance by Julie Andrews and a crabby, distracted and disinterested performance by Christopher Plummer. Somehow, Wise makes everything work in pure cinematic terms but "The Sound Of Music" makes more dramatic and logical sense on stage. The book also features a Pictorial History of "The Sound Of Music." Photos include: Mary Martin and Theodore Bikel in the original 1959 Broadway Production, the real Maria Von Trapp pictured, at various times, with Mary Martin, Florence Henderson, Robert Wise and Christopher Plummer; Julie Andrews, having a personal and professional triumph in the movie version; photos from the first Austrian production in 2005, and Connie Fisher from the 2007 London Revival. In the strange photo provided from the 1998 Broadway Revival, Rebecca Luker looks like a mean, nasty Maria who would rather kill co-star Michael Siberry (as Captain Von Trapp) instead of kiss and marry him! Whoever is your "favorite Maria", this book allows the reader to have "The Sound Of Music" as they like it and want it; all in the theatre of imagination.

As another reviewer said, this is not a book. This is the script for the Broadway musical. There is a forward from Ted Chapin and VERY long "introduction" from Timothy Crouse. Following that, you'll find the original Broadway cast information, a list of scenes, a list of music pieces, then Act One Scene One and so on.Since this is the script for the Broadway musical and not the movie, you will not find "Something Good" or "I Have Confidence" in here, and "The Lonely Goatherd" is the song Maria and the children sing when frightened by the thunderstorm. If you're interested in the differences between the two, Wikipedia does a great job of explaining them.The book contains the lines as well as the set descriptions and stage directions, in a true script format. The book does NOT contain the sheet music for the songs, although the lyrics are included in the script.I bought the Kindle version, and I am rather disappointed that a multitude of color photos, 17 pages of them to be exact, appear in the middle of a scene in the middle of one of Maria's lines. The photos are nice and all, but this is supposed to be a script, and that makes the Kindle version not exactly a great accompaniment for rehearsals.

I am so glad to see a script for "The Sound of Music" in its 1959 original form and not the dreadful 1981/1998 stage adaptation designed to appease "The Sound of Music" 1965 movie lovers. I loved the movie too but I thought it was a big mistake to even try to mold the original live show to the elements of the film. Recently the regional theater in my city unfortunately produced the 1998 adaptation and it was the most ridiculous piece of work I had the misfortune of sitting through. Believe me, Carrie Underwood, who had been criticized by many by not being able to act, was by far superior to the professional regional production which ruined a good night out even though the NBC production did swap out the song "An Ordinary Couple" with the film's "Something Good".What was so sad was a lot of the so called "elite" in my city didn't even realize they weren't seeing the original stage show. What a bunch of maroons.

My granddaughter loves this book it has words to all the songs that are sung in the movie

I gave this to my 13 year old granddaughter to read as she is going to play Sophia in her school play. It serves two purposes; gets her to read more and allows her to learn how the play was originally scripted.

I was somewhat taken back by the dissimilarity between the stage and screen versions of this popular musical. The movie version is so superior in many ways, particularly with regards to the love interest between the Baron and Maria. Also, the stage version emphasizes the political aspect of the Nazi takeover of Austria more than the motion picture.

The Sound of Music is one of musical theater's masterpieces.I bought the down-loadable version but I wish I just boughtthe book instead. It was hard to read in the down-loadableversion on PC Kindle. Anyway, a great script.

Awsome book. I love the photos that are in the center. It was well worth the cost if you are a person who enjoys theater

100% positive exactly as described

Well laid out on glossy paper with a complete, accurate set of lyrics for the songs and lines from the musical. Doesn't contain the sheet music though.

Arrived quickly was as described, Cannot fault it.

A good book for the show.

This is the wonderful original book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse, of Rodgers & Hammerstein's last collaboration 'The Sound of Music'. One wonders how much more wonderful it would have been had Hammerstein been able to write the book entirely by himself, considering how brilliant a book Writer of musicals he was, the best book writer in Musical theatre history. It probably would have been even more characterful and dramatic than is turned out in this version. The reasons behind Hammerstein not writing both the book and lyrics alone on this occasion are two-fold.In 1956 Vincent J Donahue, who would direct this original stage production, saw a German language film 'Die Trapp Famille' based on Maria Von Trapp's book published in 1949 called 'The Story Of Von Trapp Family Singers' Warner had an option on the film to make an english language version starring Audrey Hepburn as Maria. When Warner let their option drop on the movie Vincent J Donahue thought it would make the perfect vehicle for his friend Broadway Star Mary Martin, when he showed Mary and her husband producer Richard Halliday the film they too both agreed. They asked the Broadway Playrights Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse to write an adaptation of the film into a stage play where they planned to use actual music that the Von Trapps sang in their concerts.Mary Martin also wanted her friends Rodgers & Hammerstein to prehaps write one or two additional original songs that she could sing in the play, she always liked showing them the scripts of plays she was planning on doing ever since she was their Nellie Forbush in 'South Pacific' in 1949.On seeing the script which at this stage was called ' The Singing Heart' Rodgers & Hammerstein refused her request. They told her you either do it with all the actual Trapp music or get an entirely new score. Mary said it would be great if they could do it as musical, after seeing the German Language film they agreed, but told her, that they were still tied up with 'Flower Drum Song' at that time so she would have to wait. Vincent J Donahue. Mary Martin and Richard Halliday agreed to wait, but as Howard Lindsay and Russell Crouse had been brought in before Rodgers and Hammerstein they agreed to work on the book, while Rodgers and Hammerstein finished 'Flower Drum Song' In March 1959 with the show retitled 'The Sound of Music' by Richard Rodgers, Rodgers & Hammerstein began writing the Music and the Lyrics.The Show was virtually complete by the Summer of 1959. Extremely fast by Rodgers & Hammerstein standards and the score they wrote was considered by many to be their best since 'The King and I' in 1951. The Title song sung by Miss Martin, Do-Re-Mi and The Lonely Goatherd sung by Miss Martin with the Children gained worldwide currency, other Classics included 'Maria', 'Sixteen Going on Seventeen'even the secondary characters of Elsa, The Baroness and Max Detweiler were well served musically with 'How Can Love Survive' and 'No Way to Stop It', sadly removed from the 1965 film version. As was 'An Oridinary Couple' sung by Miss Martin and Theodore Bikel as Captain Georg Von Trapp' which was replaced by 'Something Good' in the film.Sadly Oscar Hammerstein's health was rapidly failing during this time, he was operated on for stomach cancer in September 1959,but still managed to write two more classic songs for this musical 'Climb Ev'ry Mountain' and 'Edelweiss' for Captian von Trapp to sing in the concert part of the show. This was the very last song written by Rodgers and Hammerstein during the Boston tryout of the musical in October 1959. Hammerstein's very last lyrics for 'Edelweiss' were: 'Look for your lover and hold him tightWhile you're health you're keeping.' these lyrics however never made it into the final published version of the song.The show opened in New York on November 16 1959 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre and ran for 1,443 performances.Oscar Hammerstein died from stomach cancer on August 23 1960 at his home in Doylestown Pennsylvania at the age of 65, ending the most successful collaboration in the history of the American musical theatre.