THEATRE + COMEDY

The Houston Family Arts Center is proud to present this uplifting story of family, love and courage. The Sound of Music, the Tony Award and Academy Awarding-winning musical by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, opens November 25 and runs through December 18. The production is directed by Teri Clark, HFAC Artistic Director, with Cary Thornton as Assistant Director, music direction by Debbie Wylie and choreography by Ellen Dyer.

Set in Austria in the late 1930s, The Sound of Music is the enchanting story of Maria, a spirited young nun who leaves the convent to become a governess for the seven children of the widowed Captain von Trapp. Maria endears herself to the mischievous children by teaching them to sing and leading them on adventures through the Austrian countryside, eventually capturing the stern Captain's heart. After Maria and Captain von Trapp marry, the Nazi Party orders him to join a naval unit, forcing the family to flee the Nazi regime by escaping across the Alps on foot.

Based on the memoir of Maria von Trapp, "The Story of the Trapp Family Singers," The Sound of Music features classic songs including “My Favorite Things,” “Climb Every Mountain,” “Sixteen Going on Seventeen,” “Edelweiss,” and “The Sound of Music.” The original 1959 Broadway production of The Sound of Music won eight Tony Awards including Best Musical, Book, and Score, and ran for 1,223 performances.

Teri Clark is excited to be working with this fabulous production team and talented cast of adults, teens, and children from all over Houston. “From the children’s antics, to the tender moments between Maria and the Captain, to the iconic ‘Climb Every Mountain’, this cast really delivers,” exclaims Clark, “and these nuns will absolutely give you goose bumps when they sing.”

The show features Leslie Lenert as “Maria,” J. Blanchard as "Captain von Trapp" (HFAC productions of A Christmas Carol, West Moon Street, Oliver, Willy Wonka, The Trip to Bountiful, and Death by Design), Becky Lou Ruiz as "Mother Abbess" (HFAC production of The Quiltmaker’s Gift), Marilyn Peacock as “Baroness Von Schraeder,” and Nick Thomas as “Max Detweiler.”

All performances of The Sound of Music will be held on the Garza Main Stage at Houston Family Arts Center, 10760 Grant Road, Houston, TX 77070 and will run November 25-December 18, 2011. With its message of discovering your purpose and living your life with love and conviction, this show is perfect for the whole family.