I don’t know very much about Zen Buddhism, but I have heard of the “koan.” It’s a statement or question that doesn’t have an answer, but if you contemplate it — probably in a way I don’t really understand — your contemplation can eventually lead to enlightenment. I think. If I’m completely off base here, please let me know.
A koan, most famously, is “the sound of one hand clapping.” But here are a few more:
How do you keep a wave upon the sand?
How do you catch a cloud and pin it down?
How do you hold a moonbeam in your hand?
And here’s one that’s a key to what I’m talking about today: how do you solve a problem like Maria?
The Maria here is, of course, Maria von Trapp, who was born on January 26 in 1905. She became the leader of the Trapp Family Singers, and in 1949 published The Story of the Trapp Family Singers. That book inspired a German movie in 1956 (The Trapp Family) and a sequel two years later (Die Trapp-Familie in Amerika). Those films didn’t attract a huge worldwide audience, but one of the people who did see them was Vince Donehue. He was a director, but not a movie director — he worked on the stage, and in one of the world’s foremost stage districts: Broadway, New York City. He directed Broadway hits, and one of his close friends was Mary Martin — a leading Broadway stage actress and singer in the 1940s and 50s. At the time she was probably most famous for her role as Peter Pan in the show with the same name.
When Donehue saw the German films about the von Trapps, he thought it would be the perfect next show for his friend Mary. She could play Maria von Trapp, of course, and he took the story to her thinking that he had confidence in sunshine, he had confidence in rain, he had confidence that spring would come again, and besides that, sunny Jim, he had confidence in him. Himself, that is. He knew he’d do better than his best.
The first idea they kicked around was a drama — a non-musical play that might include some songs because it was, after all, about a family of singers. Maybe they could get Lindsay and Crouse to write the script; that duo had been churning out Broadway hits since 1935. Then they thought more about the songs, and the Trapp Family Singers, and changed direction. Maybe the show ought to be a musical. And maybe they could get Richard Rogers and Oscar Hammerstein to do the music and lyrics. After all, that team had come up with Oklahoma, Carousel, State Fair, South Pacific, and The King and I. They were the acknowledged royalty of Broadway musicals.
Once that idea arose, nobody could shake it. The dramatic story of the Trapp Family, the governess who fell in love with the widowed father, the escape from the Nazis at the last moment, trekking across the mountains to safety in Switzerland — it was perfect! Of course…that wasn’t exactly how it happened. But never mind that; it was Close Enough, and made for a better story. And anyway, with music by Rogers and lyrics by Hammerstein, the story was really just going to be the background for the songs.
As it turned out, both duos, Lindsay and Crouse as well as Rogers and Hammerstein signed on to the project. Lindsay and Crouse wrote the “book” — the story and script for the play. Rogers and Hammerstein handled the music. And the whole production started to come together as easily as Do-Re-Me. When you know the notes to sing, you can sing almost anything. And Mary Martin definitely knew the notes. She played the main character, Maria (her original surname was changed from “Kutschera” to “Rainer” for the show), and led the children in songs throughout the production. The children’s names were also changed. In real life they were Rupert, Agathe, Werner, Hedwig, Johanna, and Martina. In the show they were Liesl, Friedrich, Louisa, Kurt, Brigitta, Marta, and Gretl. If you noticed, they also snuck in an extra kid there. It was probably Gretl; she was always the cutest anyway, being just 5 years old.
Liesl, the eldest, was sixteen going on seventeen. At that age, it’s time to think. After all, you’re on the brink. As a young woman, you’re probably unprepared to face the world of men. You’re most likely timid and shy and scared; innocent as a rose. So what you really need is a boyfriend who can protect you. Maybe somebody much older, say, seventeen going on eighteen. But as you, dear readers, might know, that boyfriend turned out to be a Nazi and nobody to be trusted. The real-life Maria ran into people like that too. The von Trapps went hiking quite often, and on one trip they were invited to spend the night in a farmer’s house. Then in the morning the farmer remembered to mention that two of his daughters — the ones with whom they’d just spent the night in the house — had scarlet fever. All of the Trapp family, including Maria, came down with it too. Maria was left with kidney problems for the rest of her life.
In the show, the Trapp family’s favorite things included spontaneously breaking into song, as well as the other things you’ll recall — raindrops on roses, whiskers on kittens, bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens (I always wondered about the kettles, though; Hammerstein must have really needed something — anything — matching the rhyme scheme and meter). But in real life, the Trapps began singing out of necessity. Their savings were safely deposited in an Austrian bank run by one of his friends. But then the bank failed. They laid off their servants, moved into just the top floor of their very large house, and rented out the rest of it. And they began their singing career in order to bring in some much-needed money. The Nazi problem was real, but the Trapps experience wasn’t anywhere near as dramatic as the escape over the mountains on foot. They were free to travel, putting on concerts, and even met Hitler at a restaurant in Munich in 1938. They eventually travelled to the US and made plans to stay for a longer period, although at first they didn’t assume it would be permanent.
By the 1940s, the Trapps were touring the US as the Trapp Family Singers, and including Maria’s and Georg’s kids, there were ten children in the group. They moved to Stowe, Vermont, establish a music camp, and built the Trapp Family Lodge. It’s still there — well, the replacement is. The original building burned down in 1980. It’s still open as a ski lodge and working farm, and it’s still managed by a von Trapp: Sam, who’s the son of Johannes (who wasn’t in the show or musical; he’s the youngest son of Maria and Georg).
It’s a great story, even if the broadway and movie version is just a bit embellished. And the show was a huge success. It won five Tony awards, including Best Musical. The movie, which starred Julie Andrews, did pretty well too; it won five Academy Awards. And that’s about the end of it — so it’s time to say so long. Farewell. Auf Wiedersehen. Good night. Adieu, to yieu. And yieu and yieu and yieu.
