Hereford Musical Theatre Company present The Sound of Music (From Hereford Times)

Hereford Musical Theatre Company present The Sound of Music

7:20pm Thursday 19th April 2012 in Theatre & Comedy

THE Herefordshire hills are alive with The Sound of Music as Hereford Musical Theatre Company presents the family favourite musical with a cast made up of just that – family members. Incorporating HMTC’s thriving youth group as members of the von Trapp family, eight of them will be working alongside their parents to make it a real family affair. Among the parent-child teams is one comprising director Sarah Phillips and her eightyear- old son, Thomas.

Sarah herself joined HMTC Youth Group at the age of 10 and has taken part in countless productions both behind the scenes and as a principal.

“I know the great experience and opportunities that being part of HMTC can bring,” she says. “It’s wonderful to have my son at my side on stage and it’s great for many of the other members to share in the same joy of watching their child learn, have fun and grow. We have a fantastic youth group and they have the opportunity to work alongside the adult cast in this production and the forthcoming production of Annie in November”.

For musical director Jenni Axtell, the production revives special memories: “I have been responsible for the music in the company’s youth group since1993, and my highlights have been Annie and Oliver!, when my own children took the lead roles so it’s great now to watch other members share in the same joy with their children.”

The Sound of Music is based on the memoir of Maria von Trapp, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers and has a score that all the family will want to sing along to – from Do-Re-Mi and Edelweiss to Sixteen Going On Seventeen, The Lonely Goatherd and of course the glorious title song, The Sound of Music.

Just like the BBC’s How Do You Solve a Problem like Maria?, HMTC has found a bright new talent for the lead role as Charlotte Glasspool takes to the stage as Maria.

Charlotte has only appeared at The Courtyard once, and this will be the first time she’s taken a principal role.

“Playing Maria has been a new challenge for me but one that has proved to be an immense amount of fun,” says Charlotte.

The Sound of Music runs at The Courtyard from Tuesday, April 24 to Saturday, April 28. To book, call the box office on 01432 340555

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