Carrie Underwood can breathe a sigh of relief: She’s just been given the A-OK from Julie Andrews regarding her role as Maria von Trapp in the upcoming live television production of The Sound of Music.
“Fifty years later, it’s time somebody had another crack at it,” Andrews told Zap2it. Andrews was not the first to perform the role–that belongs to Mary Martin, who performed it on Broadway in 1959–but Andrews’ rendition in the Academy Award-winning 1965 film The Sound of Music is certainly the most famous.
Furthermore, Andrews adds that this new presentation has its own risks and rewards to worry about given that it is indeed based on the stage musical and not Ernest Lehman’s largely reworked film script, which also incorporated some new songs (one of which, “Something Good”, will be ported over to the new TV version).
“I know they’re not doing the movie, though. They’re doing the Broadway show – that’s what they have the rights to – and I don’t know whether it will resonate similarly. In the movie, we cut some things from the stage version and added some songs,” Andrews offers.
Ultimately, Andrews opines, “It’s a lovely piece, and I do hope it works for Carrie, because she’s lovely and I’m a fan. I wish her well.”