Hall alive with the sound of music

A MUSICAL classic will be coming to the city this June with the Ballarat Lyric Theatre’s production of the Sound of Music.

Final preparations are underway for the musical which tells the story of Maria Rainer, who becomes the governess of seven motherless children.

Director, Stephen Armati, said the production is an opportunity to bring theatre back to its roots.

“We had a couple of big years with new age shows so we thought it was time to do a more traditional and child-based show,” he said.

“It’s a great opportunity to re-visit one of the classics, since I don’t think we’ve done this since 1974, and bring it to a whole new audience.

“This is taking theatre back so its essence, it’s a pure artform with pure songs and a storyline with so many layers.”

The show has many elements, making it entertaining and enticing for viewers.

“I think it’s got love, tragedy, conflict, sub-stories running underneath it all,” said Armati.

“There’s so many of us who remember the movie growing up with catchy tunes we all know and love so it’s just a great show.”

Traditionally in many productions, women have less stage time than men, however, that is not the case in the Sound of Music with its female lead.

“The show is very female heavy which is a great opportunity as unfortunately women generally don’t get shows with a lot of stage time but this one is the complete opposite,” said Armati.

The performances will provide an opportunity for locals to see a quality musical performance without travelling to Melbourne.

“You can go see a top-quality production for half the cost because everyone on stage is volunteers,” said Armati.

“It’s also good for the local economy and good for local exposure with quite a few in the company going on to work professionally.”

Set for the stage at Civic Hall, the production opens Friday 30 June and tickets can be booked at ballaratlyrictheatre.com.au.