ANTON LUITINGH

 

PIETER TOERIEN presents
ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER, DAVID IAN
and THE REALLY USEFUL GROUP
LONDON PALLADIUM PRODUCTION of

THE SOUND OF MUSIC

Music by RICHARD RODGERS
Lyrics by OSCAR HAMMERSTEIN II
(Oklahoma!, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I)

Book by HOWARD LINDSAY and RUSSEL CROUSE
Suggested by “The Trapp Family Singers” by Maria Augusta Trapp

 

“I have for years wanted to produce The Sound of Music myself. The theatre show is wonderfully crafted and I have always wanted to see the show cast with a young Maria who you really do believe climbs a tree and scrapes her knees. I hope in fulfilling a dream that I have had since the morning of 19 May 1961 that we are doing justice to a musical that arguably contains the best-loved songs of all time.” - Andrew Lloyd Webber

 

Based on the memoir of Maria von Trapp, “The Story of the Trapp Family Singers”, The Sound of Music follows wayward postulant, Maria, who leaves the Abbey and becomes governess to seven children. Her irrepressible spirit endears her to both the children and their father, Captain von Trapp. Maria and Georg marry but shortly afterwards Nazi Germany takes control of Austria and demands that the Captain assume a position in the navy. Rather than go to war against his own country, the Captain, Maria and the children with the help of the nuns in the Abbey, flee across the Alps.

 

From its origins as a stage musical in the early ‘60s, through to its incarnation in the acclaimed film version that made the story of the Von Trapp family singers into a 20th century legend, The Sound of Music has come full circle and returns in spectacular fashion to its true home – the live stage. Featuring an all-star South African cast singing some of the most memorable songs ever performed on the musical stage, including “My Favourite Things”, “Edelweiss”, “Do-Re-Mi”, “Sixteen Going on Seventeen”, “The Lonely Goatherd”, “Climb Ev’ry Mountain”, and the title song “The Sound of Music”, The Sound of Music is a must-see on the 2014/15 theatrical calendar!

 

With words and music by the legendary Rogers and Hammerstein (Oklahoma!, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I), The Sound of Music originally premiered on Broadway in 1959 to record-breaking advance ticket sales. It won eight Tony Awards - including “Best Musical”. The show opened in London in 1961 and became the longest-running American musical of its generation. The 1965 Hollywood film, which starred Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer, won five Oscars, including “Best Picture”, and quickly became the highest-grossing film in history. Even today, The Sound of Music remains the most successful movie musical in history.

 

Since the turn of the 21st century, the enduring magic of The Sound of Music has lead to major productions around the world, giving testament to its title as “The World’s Most Popular Musical”. This particular production of the legendary Rodgers and Hammerstein musical opened to rave reviews and sell-out business at the Wales Millennium Centre in July 2009, this was followed by a record-breaking 954 performances at the London Palladium where it was seen by well over 2 million people.

 

The South African production will star Andre Schwartz as Captain von Trapp and Bethany Dickson as Maria. It will then move on to perform internationally in Singapore, New Zealand, China, Hong Kong and other destinations.

 

The rest of the amazingly talented cast include:

Janelle Visagie as Mother Abbess
Taryn Sudding as Baroness Schraeder
James Borthwick as Max Detweiler
Carmen Pretorius as Liesel von Trapp
Rhys Williams as Rolf Gruber
Malcolm Terrey as Franz
Rika Sennett as Frau-Schmidt

 

The Ensemble includes: Monique Weich, Genna Galloway, LJ Nielson, Pauline du Plessis, Ami Rose Barber, Sebe Leotlela, Pisto Msongelna, Claire Simonis, Mike Huff, Richard White, Adam Pelkowitz, Mark Sykes, Duane Alexander (Dance Captain too), Ryan Flynn, Torah Rapoho, Claire Taylor and Christopher Dudgeon.

 

Anton Luitingh is the South African Resident Director and Louis Zurnamer conducts a 13 piece orchestra.