Sounds of Music

I settle into the audience of my daughter's newest theatre foray, a youth production of The Sound Of Music, featuring kids from less than three feet tall to almost six feet. And for an hour, I lose myself in the music, the small children in adorable costumes with adorable voices, and the somewhat older up-and-comers who guide the show. It is a good week to have the opportunity to lose myself, even briefly (and even when pieces of the story in question bring me right back). That's what theatre does--while nurturing a community of performers, artists, and technicians, it also invites us to be part of that community. As soon as we join the audience, we allow ourselves to feel and to believe. And while we may allow ourselves to escape what we need to face outside the theatre, we also allow ourselves to have an experience that will strengthen us to face it.

I leave the performance knowing that I am at least a little different from the me who entered. It's not just the hills that are alive--it's all of us who have shared the experience of theatre. And that's what "the sound of music" is really all about.