'Stranger Things' Meets 'Sound Of Music' In Millburn Next Month

MILLBURN, NJ — Paper Mill Playhouse will kick off its production of "The Sound of Music" in December with a number of adult and child stars, including Jacey Sink, 12, who's appeared on TV's "Stranger Things" as young Max Mayfield. Jacey, a Summit resident, is the younger sister of Sadie Sink, who portrays older Max on the hit Netflix show.

"The Sound of Music" follows the journey of a would-be nun who's dispatched to care for the children of a widowed Naval captain. She teaches the kids to sing and falls in love with their gruff lonely goatherd of a dad, all while the Nazis prepare to annex Austria.

Their moral quandary: Do they unwisely compromise, or head for the hills?

The stage show premiered on Broadway in 1959, starring Mary Martin and Theodore Bikel. It won five Tony awards. The classic movie musical premiered in 1965, starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer, and won five Academy Awards.

Like many Rogers & Hammerstein musicals, the show has a bright and dark side. The stage show is a bit darker than the film, with its moral reckoning slightly more overt amid the jaunty music.

The renowned Paper Mill Playhouse will put its own imprimatur on the classic starting Dec. 1. Shows run from this Friday through Jan. 1, 2023. Official opening night is this Sunday.

The production will feature several child stars from New Jersey.

Local Child Stars

The von Trapp children will be played by Coleman Simmons (14, from West Orange) as Friedrich, the aformentioned Jacey Sink (12, from Summit) as Louisa, Cody Braverman (10, from Short Hills) as Kurt, Tara Rajan (9, from Sands Point, NY) as Brigitta, Austin Elle Fisher (9, from Tinton Falls) as Marta, Charlotte Sydney Harrington (age 7, from Shelton, CT) as Gretl, and standbys Charlotte Ewing (age 11, from Chatham) and Ethan Joseph (age 12, from Somerset).

The adult stars include Ashley Blanchet (Paper Mill’s Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella, Broadway’s Waitress) as Maria, Graham Rowat (Broadway’s Dear Evan Hansen, Sunset Boulevard) as Captain Georg von Trapp, Cáitlín Burke (The Sound of Music national tour) as Mother Abbess, Emily Borromeo (Broadway’s School of Rock, The Prom first national tour) as Elsa Schraeder, Gavin Lee (Paper Mill’s Beauty and the Beast, Broadway’s SpongeBob SquarePants) as that lovable gadabout, Max Detweiler.

Special Performances

Paper Mill Playhouse offers award-winning access programs and services, and will offer accommodations and showings for people with disabilities on certain dates. Find out more here.

The Playhouse says, "Celebrate the holidays with the heart-soaring melodies of The Sound of Music, including such beloved gems as 'My Favorite Things,' 'Edelweiss,' and 'Climb Ev'ry Mountain.' Directed by Paper Mill Producing Artistic Director Mark S. Hoebee, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s final musical conjures an Austria replete with rolling hills, singing nuns, and a tender love story set in the shadow of World War II. Kenny Ingram (Paper Mill’s Songs for a New World and A Jolly Holiday) returns to choreograph."

Find out more and get tickets here.