| Who else was considered to play Captain von Trapp in 1959? | |
| Posted by: portenopete 12:04 pm EST 01/29/18 | |
| In reply to: re: Andrews/Bikel coincidence - TheOtherOne 10:55 am EST 01/29/18 | |
|
|
|
| I am sure there is some account in a book somewhere, but I am wondering who else might have been mentioned to play von Trapp opposite Mary Martin in the original production? Theodore Bikel was a very odd choice, to my mind, given that he was 11 years younger than Martin (when in real life the Captain was 25 years OLDER than Maria) and also that he was not a handsome leading man-type the way most leads were on Broadway in the '50s; he'd played mainly heavies in movies, I think. I don't know whether Bikel's cultural history was so well known in 1959 since he had just begun the folk singer part of his career, but it was kind of ironic that a Jewish actor was playing the epitome of Aryan manhood. (Of course, Bikel was an ACTUAL Austrian, and God knows not all Austrians are models of Aryan stereotype.) It would have seemed to me that more conventional Broadway guys might have been sought out. Alfred Drake comes to mind. Or John Raitt. Or Ray Middleton. Perhaps with Mary Martin dominating the proceedings the bigger male stars felt they'd be shunted to the sidelines? I grew up listening to Bikel's folk albums and have always cherished his incredible artistry. I saw him in concert when I was a kid but I'm sorry I never got to see him in a show. He gave us a lot of opportunity as he continued acting onstage almost until the end of his long life. |
|
| reply | |
|
|
|
| Previous: | re: Andrews/Bikel coincidence - TheOtherOne 10:55 am EST 01/29/18 |
| Next: | re: Who else was considered to play Captain von Trapp in 1959? - JohnDunlop 02:10 pm EST 01/29/18 |
| Thread: |
|
Time to render: 0.025661 seconds.