Magical Mary is Poppin into Redcliffe

Photos: Alan Burchill

A cast of more than 40 young performers from ROAR Academy will bring the beloved story and music of Mary Poppins to life in February.

The practically perfect junior Broadway musical, Mary Poppins Jr, will be performed by Redcliffe Musical Theatre (RMT) Youth and ROAR Academy at Redcliffe Entertainment Centre on February 1 and 2 at 11am and 3pm.

RMT President Madeleine Johns says the cast is eager to show audiences what they can do on stage.

“We are looking forward to this production as Mary Poppins is one of the most popular family-friendly musicals of all time. The junior version is true to the original, keeping all the well-loved songs and dance numbers such as Supercali…, Feed the Birds, Step in Time and A Spoonful of Sugar,” Madeleine says.

“At its heart, Mary Poppins is about family, love, and finding balance between work and play. These themes resonate universally, with the story showing how the Banks family overcomes their struggles through kindness, creativity, and understanding.

“This universal message of hope and joy is at the core of Mary Poppins, which encourages audiences to look beyond the ordinary, embrace life’s joys, and find magic in everyday moments.

“This optimism and positivity are part of its lasting charm. Because of these reasons, productions of Mary Poppins—whether Broadway-calibre or local Jr. adaptations like ROAR Academy's upcoming show—continue to capture hearts worldwide.”

Madeleine says the cast will bring humor, wisdom, and a touch of whimsy to the stage as they entertain children and adults in the audience.

“From the practically perfect Mary Poppins - played by Zoe Hitcock alternating with Tamsyn Doyle - to the charming chimney sweep Bert (Toby Bailey), the eccentric cast of characters is lovable and multidimensional,” she says.

“While Tamsyn is new to ROAR Academy this year, Zoe has been performing with ROAR Academy and RMT since 2018 recently playing Anna in Frozen Jr (2023) and Fiona in Shrek Jr (2024) as well as Dory in Finding Nemo Jr (2024) and Kathryn in Newsies Jr (2024).

“Toby has played a number of lead roles with RMT and ROAR Academy having played the title role of Oliver in Oliver (2022), Friedrich in The Sound of Music (2023) and Marlin in Finding Nemo Jr (2024) as well as Davy in Newsies Jr (2024).”

Award-winning Director Madeleine Johns, Musical Director Rhonda Davidson-Irwin (VIVA LA MUSICA) and co-choreographers Meredith Johns and Mike Lapot are working with the cast to create a magical performance.

“We are working on the physical aspects of Mary's character to bring her to life in this production - through accent work and physical elements such as walking and talking in the same manner that made Julie Andrews famous - right down to replicating costumes and props to create the right atmosphere,” Madeleine explains.

“The vocal aspects are also critically important and our Musical Director is working with the girls on diction, projection and accent modulation to create the iconic sound of Mary Poppins’ singing voice.

“Audiences may remember the 2016 RMT production of Mary Poppins also staged at Redcliffe Entertainment Centre. We are bringing back co-choreographers from that award-winning production to work with this junior cast to add some RMT magic to the dance numbers. We know you'll love the finished product.”

To buy tickets, visit the Redcliffe Entertainment Centre website.