Mary Poppins is winter magic

I was feeling pretty casual about Festival Players’ version of Mary Poppins until Stephen Allred’s chimney sweep, Bert, blew the audience’s collective mind.

With an unconcerned, blasĂ© tap of his shoes, Allred walked up the side of Festival Place’s proscenium arch and tapped upside down right over the orchestra before walking down the other side.

Those few seconds of Broadway-style scene time were dangerous, regardless of the safety measures employed by the theatre company. But it was also stunning; it made for a night to remember, now and forever.

The original musical co-creator, Cameron Mackintosh, is acknowledged as theatre’s razzmatazz virtuoso. He has honoured P. L. Tavers incredible books with a concoction of painstaking diligence and extravagance.

And director Brian Bast pays homage to Mackintosh’s vision in a way that elicited approving smiles and surprising gasps for the enigmatic super-nanny.

Perfectly poised and completely confident, Gianna Read magically appears on stage as the finger-snapping Poppins. Before you can say, “spit-spot” the prim and proper, but sensible super-nanny has put the Banks home to right.

Looking exactly like the picture of an Edwardian nanny, Read takes over the role and impresses with her classically trained soprano voice that soared up to the first balcony with ease.

Utterly charming, she is stern, yet deeply compassionate and at times humorous. All these qualities spring to the surface in the beautifully sung Practically Perfect, Spoonful of Sugar and Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.

As Bert, Allred is a wicked tap dancer. And as our narrator, he ties together all the complexities and anxieties of a middle-class family headed by an emotionally stunted husband and father that at first appears more concerned with appearance than the well-being of his loved ones.

Gary Carter as the shortsighted Mr. Banks is well balanced with Larissa Pohoreski’s nurturing, but less self-assured Mrs. Banks.

Anna Johnson as Jane and Ethan Stang as brother Michael deliver a smooth transition from bratty, out-of-control children that stomp on a nanny’s foot to compassionate, caring youngsters willing to give the poor Old Bird Woman money for birdseed.

Some of the musical’s funniest elements came from St. Albert actor Lucy Haines as Mrs. Brill the cook and housekeeper. Overworked and frustrated at the Banks’ revolving door of nannies, Mrs. Brill is certainly unafraid of adding her two cents. But to the delight of the audience, speaking out has its comedic consequences.

There were many appealing performances right from Jack Bizuk’s Neleus, the statue that comes to life, Kathleen Sera’s maniacal nanny Mrs. Andrews and Levy Poppin’s balloon-chested Mrs. Corry.

Choreographer Shelley Tookey deserves a special nod for her high-flying choreography and Michael Clark’s orchestra needs to be singled out for their tight, lively musicianship.

With such Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious Christmas escapism, it’s a great chance to get out and enjoy the magic of winter.