Plain and simple: mean people need Jesus. They will be in my prayers tonight. – Carrie Underwood
Despite receiving harsh feedback for her performance of Maria in NBC’s live broadcast of “The Sound of Music” last Thursday, Carrie Underwood has responded to her critics with the kindness of her nun character.
“Plain and simple: Mean people need Jesus,” Underwood tweeted last Friday. “They will be in my prayers tonight … 1 Peter 2:1-25.”
Underwood was the winner of "American Idol" in 2005 and has since established herself as a country-pop singer, but many were quick to note that she doesn’t have a background in acting.
“She simply is not an actress, at least not at this point, and her entire performance had the sense of remove that comes from the constant awareness that one is experiencing carefully considered line readings," NPR writer Linda Holmes said.
Others noted the different nature of the live performance compared to the stage adaptation of “The Sound of Music.”
“You must remember Julie Andrews' version was a movie in which they could shoot each scene over and over until it was perfect,” wrote Joy, a commenter on a Deseret News article about the performance. “There was no way a live stage performance could come across on TV as well as if you were sitting in the audience.”
Underwood was pleased with how the live production turned out and was quick to praise God.
“Glory to God tonight … I couldn’t be more proud,” she tweeted on Thursday. “What a tough thing to pull off and we did it! I am so blessed!!!”
Abby Stevens is a writer for the DeseretNews.com Faith and Family sections. She is a graduate of Brigham Young University–Idaho. Contact her at astevens@deseretdigital.com.