The captain is being forced to accept command of a Nazi naval unit, the Nazis having recently annexed Austria after discussion with Maria, he decides to flee Austria with his family rather than take up the role. In the original musical, the song occurs during the von Trapps’ performance at the Kaltzburg Festival (relocated to Salzburg in the film). The flower also had strong military connotations, it was the symbol worn by the various German alpine units both before and during the war, as well as an insignia of the Edelweiss Pirates, an anti-Nazi youth movement who had evaded the Hitler Youth. Given the extreme conditions the flower grew in, as well as its rarity, bringing one back for a partner became a romanticised symbol of true love and the flower has become a symbol of the mountains. The titular edelweiss is a flower which grows on the steep, rocky cliff-faces of the Alps. The song was designed to showcase the folk-singing talents of Theodor Bilek, the Broadway originator for Captain von Trapp. ‘Edelweiss’ was one of the final additions to the musical, as well as the final song that Oscar Hammerstein II ever wrote. Listening to it again, I realised that this song is perhaps more relevant now than ever before. Plummer’s death brought this song back into my mind, frequently featuring on the news coverage of his obituary. Arguably his defining moment in the film is when, on hearing the children singing to the Baroness Elsa Schraeder, he joins them with the song ‘Edelweiss’. To many people, Plummer (when not busy replacing ‘problematic’ actors) is most famous for the role of Captain von Trapp in the 1965 film of The Sound of Music. I, like many other people, was recently saddened by the death of celebrated Canadian actor Christopher Plummer.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |