Company to present Broadway musical in nine mainstage performances
WHAT: On April 26, 2024, Houston Grand Opera (HGO) will open classic, family-friendly musical The Sound of Music, with the company’s own chorus director, Richard Bado, at the podium. Taking center stage in this production is Grammy Award-winning mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard as Maria and acclaimed baritone Alexander Birch Elliott as Captain von Trapp.
This beloved work of musical theater features music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, with a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It shares the story of the von Trapp family and the novice-turned-governess Maria, who brings joy and music into their lives.
A group of talented Houston-area youths will take on singing roles as the von Trapp children. Last fall, HGO held the largest children’s auditions in company history, during which hundreds of young singers converged upon the Wortham Theater Center in hopes of joining the cast.
This production represents the first time HGO has staged the perennially popular musical, presented in a new co-production from HGO and The Glimmerglass Festival, created by legendary director Francesca Zambello. Strong demand for tickets has led the company to add a ninth show date.
The company also has introduced new themed experiences at select performances of the musical—Military Appreciation Day (May 5), Pride Night (May 11), and Mother’s Day (May 12)—featuring a host of lobby activations, special food and drink offerings, and more. For more information, visit HGO.org.
The performance runs two hours and 48 minutes, including one intermission. It is sung in English with projected English text.
WHO: The world-renowned cast will be led by mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard as Maria, baritone Alexander Birch Elliott as Captain von Trapp; sopranos Katie Van Kooten as The Mother Abbess and Tori Tedeschi Adams in her company debut as Liesl; baritone Daniel Belcher as Max Derweiler; and mezzo-soprano Megan Marino in her HGO mainstage debut as Elsa Schrader. Francesca Zambello directs, with Richard Bado conducting.
WHEN: Friday, April 26, 2024, at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, April 28, 2024, at 2 p.m.
Tuesday, April 30, 2024, at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, May 4, 2024, at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 5, 2024, at 2 p.m. (Military Appreciation Day)
Friday, May 10, 2024, at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, May 11, 2024, at 1 p.m.
Saturday, May 11, 2024, at 7:30 p.m. (Pride Night)
Sunday, May 12, 2024, at 2 p.m. (Mother’s Day)
WHERE: Wortham Theater Center, 501 Texas Ave.
TARIFF: Tickets range from $25 to $210. For more information and to buy tickets, visit HGO.org or call the Box Office at 713-228-6737. Students with a valid student ID may purchase $20 tickets one month prior to the opening of every performance; see HGO.org/tickets.
PHOTO: Link to The Sound of Music photos can be found here. Photo credit: Karli Cadel.
About Houston Grand Opera
Houston Grand Opera (HGO) is one of the largest, most innovative, and most highly acclaimed opera companies in the United States. General Director and CEO Khori Dastoor assumed leadership of the organization and responsibility for its strategic vision in 2021. HGO was the only American finalist for Opera Company of the Year in the 2019 International Opera Awards, and the only American company to be nominated twice. In fulfilling its mission to advance the operatic art, to serve the Houston community, and to be a global leader in the future of opera, HGO has led the field in commissioning and producing new works (76 world premieres to date) and in training and nurturing promising young artists and administrators. The company contributes to the cultural enrichment of Houston and the nation through a diverse and innovative program of performances, community events, and education projects that reaches the widest possible public. HGO’s pioneering Community and Learning initiative has served as a model for other arts organizations. The company invites all Houstonians to experience superlative opera without the barrier of price through discounted single tickets and subscriptions, subsidized student performances, and free productions.
HGO has toured extensively and has won a Tony, two Grammy awards, and three Emmy awards. It is the only opera company to win all three honors.
