Free-Rain Theatre Company has already presented the Canberra premieres of The Phantom of the Opera and Legally Blonde - The Musical. Next year, the company will bring another musical to the nation's capital for the first time: Mary Poppins.
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Based on the stories by Australian author P.L. Travers and the Walt Disney movie, Mary Poppins tells of the mysterious titular nanny who literally flies into the lives of the dysfunctional Banks family to sort out their problems with a touch of magic and a lot of songs.
Producer Anne Somes said, "Mary Poppins is big, magical and loads of fun."
Like the last couple of Free-Rain musical premieres, the show will combine a professional director and lead actors as well as plenty of local talent both on and off the stage.
Director Stephen Colyer - a former ballet dancer who moved into musical theatre and then trained as a director - said people had been enjoying the stories for over 50 years and the movie for a half a century as well as the stage musical with premiered in 2004.
He said that for this production, "We're looking at finding a more poetic concept of the show that doesn't economise on the magical aspects of the production but gives the show a different tone to the original so this production will feel unique."
And Mary Poppins will definitely be flying, he said.
At the launch, held in the colourful environs of Lollipops Playground and Cafe, stars Alinta Chidzey and Shaun Rennie performed excerpts from several numbers including A Spoonful of Sugar, Jolly Holiday and Let's Go Fly A Kite.
Both actors performed in Canberra in The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber a few years ago and have had extensive professional experience.
Chidzey said the role of Mary Poppins was a great change from some of her recent roles including the fiery Anita in West Side Story and the ingenue Kathy in Singin' in the Rain.
"There's a lot of mystique to Mary Poppins," she said.
Travers apparently thought Julie Andrews in the film was a bit too sweet and Chidzey hopes to bring a more acerbic quality to the role.
Rennie said landing the part of Bert the chimney sweep was "a bit of a dream come true ... for a tall, lanky person who's someone who likes to be cheeky and chirpy, it's a great role."
Mary Poppins is on at the Canberra Theatre Centre from March 12 to 29, 2015. Bookings: canberratheatrecentre.com.au or 6275 2700.
