Roll out the red carpet for The Sound of Music and the one big lesson on authenticity it gave me.
A long-time favourite of many, an original Broadway production that opened in 1959 and it’s still winning hearts and accolades all over the world in 2016.
Arrival
Yesterday after months of waiting I arrived at our Festival theatre with sixteen close family members of all ages to share in the nostalgic show that we all love.
The theatre was packed. Children holding treat bags or nibbles brought from home, adults dressed in their matinee best outfit. Plastic champagne glasses, full to the brim came walking into the theatre with an eager person ready to sit, relax and sip the afternoon away.
Handbags were full of tissues for the poignant memories that this musical draws out in everyone. It really is a string of warm moments and a moving musical of love, happiness, innocence and joy.
Smiles and love galore were oozing from the audience, people were slowly switching off from their all-consuming lives for the afternoon to be mindfully present at this long awaited show.
I was lucky to be in the front row, and had said hello to the orchestra before we even started, being so close, with no heads in front of me to dodge, gives you even more of a sense of being right in the middle of it, I could feel I would be very present in all the magical moments to appear on the stage in front of me.
This particular lovely musical is even more touching and poignant to my family for the songs have been played in my family since my birth, on all different musical instruments from the guitar to a piano accordion and immediately brings up many long gone sentimental happy memories.
The Austrian setting feels like home as it is where I still have relatives residing today only kilometres away, and have been to visit on a few occasions in the recent years.
I was in my element and the show had not yet even started.
Everyone was waiting in anticipation for the 2pm tick on the clock, the curtain to rise and expose the stage, the actors and the musical with all its favourite songs to commence. As the 2pm stroke ticked the chitter chatter echoing throughout the theatre came to a sudden hush and the show began.
The big lesson – Authenticity
As the story goes…
Captain Von Trapp, the father was offered a commission in Germany’s navy. Since Von Trapp opposed the Nazis, the family left Austria escaping over the mountains to Switzerland on foot.
Reading more today, I realise this is not the original true story line but one that was adapted for the musical.
Although providing a string of magical moments and being a moving musical of love, happiness, innocence and joy. It also brings with it a story of adversity and a strong leading man who will move heaven and earth to stand up for what he believes in.
He would rather move his wife and children through the cold mountains on foot in the dark of night, potentially facing perilous situations than stand down to what he believes in to please others.
He is authentic to his core, has a rare strength in character, is a man of his word, is true and authentic to himself and because of that stands tall in his own self respect and for that is respected and admired by others.
His friend in the show Max and the house helpers, Frau Schmidt and Franz dissimilarly and who driven by fear, succumb to the German regime unwillingly to help keep the peace and avoid individual uncomfortableness and/or punishment.
Even to me in the audience I could feel they were draped in low self esteem and a sense that they were being walked over and had given away control over the situation and their lives, they felt they had no choice but to do what they were told despite their inner self no doubt strongly objecting.
Sensible or silly
There may be some who see his conviction to his core as silly and dangerous and unnecessary, why not agree with the Germans, stand down and maintain a comfort zone and a status quo.
It is not up to us to judge others, however, for me, I stand strong and believe in standing up to what we believe in and being authentic to the core.
My inner core
I believe in looking inside, I believe in knowing who we are, being true to ourselves. Like everything it takes time, patience, growth and a strong determination to be individual and stand out from the norm.
We all fall over head first and need to pick ourselves up, dust off the dirt and try again. I am far from perfect but I have self awareness that drives me to work towards being true to myself all the time.
I may not get it right every time sometimes I may avoid things to keep the peace but when I do I can feel the inner sting, my soul knows I am being untrue on those occasions and will happily remind me of my down fall, and to learn for next time.
Questions
Where are you being true to yourself?
Where are you standing tall and maintaining your self respect?
Where have you fallen in the dirt and need to try again?
Where are you letting yourself down?
Where are you trying to please others?
What do you need to tell someone? (Nicely)
What is one thing you could do this week to grow your self respect?
Where is your inner soul trying to point you?
What are three things you know to be true and authentic about yourself?
Are you being true and authentic to yourself in regards to these three things?
A standing ovation
As the show came to its conclusion and I put the tissues away, I gave a standing ovation.
Today I again give praise to the Sound of Music to producing an amazing show and to not only allowing me to stop to enjoy a fabulous show in the afternoon with friends and family but also once again highlighting to me the importance of being authentic to yourself, maintaining your self respect and living with an inner sense of LOVE, TRUTH and PURPOSE, which just happens to be the values I base my Life in the Pink business on.
If you haven’t yet seen the show do yourself a favour and invest in a ticket, put your best outfit on, tune your voice, and arrive ready for a magical few hours and trust me, Edelweiss in all its glory will not disappoint you.
Auf Wiedersehen
