I bet it was a wonderful show in the small simplistic beautiful style of The Fantasticks and many others, sadly lost these days. However I think the film handled it pretty well- again it wasn’t an overblown production- like a Chorus Line was years later.
This film is unique in thats it’s simplicity is its strength. It’s not supposed to be a blockbuster big budget road show production but rather humble like its subject matter. I’ve always enjoyed it for what it is.