Girls in patterned dresses with curtain-made sashes. Boat rides filled with music that end in huge splashes. Silver-white Austrian mountains that melt into spring. These are a few of my favorite things.
As a child, one of my earliest school-related memories is sitting in music class learning “Do Re Mi.” My music teacher recommended a movie to all of her pupils called "The Sound of Music". I misheard her about a few of the key details. I went home and tried to tell my mother about the movie, but she didn’t know a film about an Australian babysitter.
When I was eight, I got my tonsils taken out. I had recently acquired "The Sound of Music" on DVD, so that was the last disc in my player. For the first week of my recovery, the film played on a constant loop in my bedroom. I committed the entire screenplay to memory, and no matter how many times I watched it, I found myself entirely emotionally invested in the film each viewing. I recognized the fact that I was Brigitta--bookish, reserved, slightly rebellious and keenly observant--but I wanted desperately to be Liesl--charming, witty, vaguely naive but still supremely confident.
As I got older, I fell in love with Charmian Carr’s portrayal of the eldest von Trapp. All of the young actors in The Sound of Music were exceptionally well cast, but there was just something special about that performance. I soon begged my parents for Carr’s autobiography. I sincerely recommend both Forever Liesl and Letters to Liesl to everyone.
As Liesl, Charmian Carr managed to strike a difficult and delicate balance that was essential for the role to work. Liesl is the juxtaposition of so many things--naivety and experience, youth and maturity, the tender last few moments of childhood and the tentative beginning of burgeoning womanhood, unbridled joy and cautious confinement of emotion, carefree first love and the worries and uncertainty of relationships. She makes it seem effortless, but a role that requires such a range would be daunting for even the most experienced actress.
Charmian Carr was not the most experienced actress. A dancer by passion and trade, she was the dark horse candidate for Liesl from the outset. Her mother had forced Charmian and her sisters into show business many years prior, but she had not acted at all prior to auditioning for "The Sound of Music". Even as the field narrowed and it became apparent she was perfect for the role, studio executives were reluctant to officially sign Carr for the part because her eyes were so insanely blue they worried they would not translate well to screen. After weeks of careful consideration, hours and hours of rehearsing choreography and numerous screen tests, they finally conceded and named her their definite Liesl. Carr was ecstatic, but the day she received the official call was as bitter as it was sweet; she got the call that her surrogate father figure had passed away within minutes of receiving the news about the film.
Despite the tragedy that surrounded her childhood and her casting, Charmy, as she came to be known to those close to her, persevered. She recalled her time in Salzburg with nothing but fondness and love. The actors playing the von Trapp children all forged deep and lasting bonds during filming. They frequently hold “family” reunions and all have remained in contact for over fifty years. Charmian was also close with Dan Truhitte and the other adults involved in the picture. She was the only one of the seven children to get close to Christopher Plummer, and their chemistry is apparent in their scenes and songs together. In fact, later Charmian would admit to harboring a crush on the experienced actor. She would often end her long days of shooting by standing near the hotel piano, listening to Plummer play softly.
Charmian’s first professional acting scene was Liesl climbing in Maria’s bedroom window after getting caught in the rain. In an ironic event of bookending, the final scene she shot for the film was the “Sixteen Going on Seventeen” dance sequence. Carr was extremely excited to film that segment since dancing was her first creative love. She had worked tirelessly to perfect and polish her moves. During an early take, she slipped and lost her footing. Someone was supposed to apply adhesive to the bottom of her shoes to keep her from sliding during filming, but somehow this never happened. Charmian went sailing through a glass panel in the gazebo and broke an ankle. She was doctored up and her standin was prepped for the dance number. But Charmian was adamant that she would complete Liesl’s most famous scene. She would not let down the gathered film crew. She managed to film the rest of the scene on an injured ankle. You would never know from watching that scene in the film that anything was wrong. The amateur actress no one was willing to bet on becoming Liesl proved to be a champion performer.
Champion though she was, Charmian was not fully bitten by the show business bug. She loved the process of making "The Sound of Music", but she did not center her life around filmmaking or acting. She maintained all of her meaningful relationships from filming, remaining especially close with Nicholas Hammond, Friedrich, whom she considered her platonic soulmate. She devoted her life to preserving the joy and hope the movie helped to bring to the lives of all who saw it. She would often travel to attend theatrical productions of "The Sound of Music", and she strived to respond to all her letters from fans of the film.
The world lost an immense talent in Charmian Carr. Not only that, we lost an innocent and sweet soul, a persevering spirit and a joyous woman. It is strange to think about this loss. Never again will the von Trapp family children all stand next to each other. Never again will I be able to watch the film knowing all the main players are still alive. I feel as though a connection to the film has been severed. Liesl was the example of youth and innocence; she should never be old enough to die. Now that she’s gone, it feels as if no one in the film is safe and immortal anymore. Albeit, I am comforted by the fact that while the people may not be immortal, the feelings they invoke and inspire in me with each viewing of the film are. The joy, hope, liveliness, comfort and love I feel after watching "The Sound of Music" will live on long after all the actors involved in the picture perish. Liesl may have departed, but her spirit and what she represents will continuously persevere and endure. Like she and Maria say in the film, “Sometimes I feel as though the world is coming to an end.” “[...] and other times you feel as though it is only beginning.” I can always meet Liesl again by popping in my DVD and being transported the the picturesque Austrian countryside.
So long, farewell, Charmian Carr. You will be sorely missed, and forever will you be sixteen going on seventeen to me.
