Fraulein Maria, an uproarious spoof on The Sound of Music, makes its Philadelphia debut
October 29, 2009Fraulein Maria, Doug Elkins & Friends uproarious spoof on The Sound of Music makes Philadelphia debut - November 12-14, 2009
Philadelphia, PA Doug Elkins & Friends FRAULEIN MARIA, a belly-laughing, gender-bending, full-length send-up of the beloved film classic, The Sound of Music, makes its Philadelphia premiere November 12-14 as part of the Dance Celebration Series at the Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, 3680 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA.
Conceived and choreographed by Doug Elkins, two-time Bessie award-winning choreographer and B-Boy maven, FRAULEIN MARIA was inspired by the iconic 1965 movie The Sound of Music, starring Julie Andrews. Elkins became inspired while watching the Sound of Music with his children after a huge creative slump following the birth of his son and this piece drug him out of the doldrums. Set to the films famous score by Richard Rodgers with lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein, Elkins version features 13 talented dancers in 11 vignettes, and is co-directed by Barbara Karger and Michael Preston. The New York Times has exclaimed, "Mr. Elkins's ceaselessly brilliant and often hilarious take on The Sound of Music is a fount of unending movement ideas and about as much visceral pleasure as its possible to have in a theater."
Set to the entire soundtrack (though in a different order), FRAULEIN MARIA showcases no less than three Marias, cross-dressing nuns and an inventive, unforgettable hip-hop solo, performed by Elkins dressed in a hoodie and basketball shorts to "Climb Evry Mountain." A seductive duet of "Sixteen Going on Seventeen," features a man in drag in a chair being enticed by a voguing paramour. Ensemble sections such as "Do-Re-Mi" and "The Lonely Goatherd" feature Elkins' irrepressible stylea unique mix of club, hip-hop, dance theater and contemporary vocabularies, as well as his tongue-in-cheek references to acclaimed dance makers Paul Taylor, Jose Limon and George Balanchine. Dance Magazine sums it up: Many vignettes had the audience chuckling, laughing and guffawing.
Under the artistic direction of Randy Swartz, the Dance Celebration series, presented by Dance Affiliates and the Annenberg Center’s Penn Presents, maintains the tradition of bringing to Philadelphia the world’s best contemporary touring dance companies. This season’s The Magic of Movement pays tribute to American dance and showcases its diversity of styles, from tap to Broadway, jazz, contemporary, hip-hop, multimedia and dance theater.
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