Music & Lyrics by:	Richard M Sherman and Robert B Sherman
New songs by:	George Stiles and Anthony Drewe
Directed by:	Richard Eyre
Cast:	Ashley Brown (Mary Poppins), Gavin Lee (Bert), Daniel Jenkins (Mr. Banks), Rebecca Luker (Mrs. Banks), Jane Carr (Mrs. Brill), Mark Price (Robertson Ay), Cass Morgan (Bird Woman), Ruth Gottschall (Miss Andrew), and Michael McCarty (Admiral Boom). Katherine Doherty and Delaney Moro will alternate in the role of Jane Banks. Henry Hodges and Alexander Scheitinger will alternate in the role of Michael Banks..
Synopsis:	Growing up in London in 1910, the Banks children, Jane and Michael need a nanny, and they write an advertisement to put in The Times stipulating that she must 'have a cheery disposition. Rosy cheeks, no warts. Play games, all sorts.' Of course when she arrives, the games Mary Poppins has in mind are not at all what the children expected, but are nonetheless 'extremely diverting.'

Review by Barbara Mehlman

I've always had a love-hate relationship with the Disney Corporation, but I rarely spent much time thinking about it -- until now. It came back in a rush after I saw the gorgeous production of "Mary Poppins" with, unfortunately, a very ordinary star.

The love part started when Disney took a chance on New York, and spent $34million to renovate the crumbling New Amsterdam Theatre, located on 42nd St. -- the first street of a decaying Theatre District that included prostitutes, the homeless, and porno shops, along with a bunch of historic theaters that were barely standing.

People avoided the area as they passed through this once-great section of New York, but Disney was the first to help bring it back, and in cooperation with the New 42nd Street Organization, lured others to follow his lead -- and they did in large numbers.

Today the street now boasts a sumptuous American Airlines Theatre (formerly the Selwyn) that houses the best that the Roundabout Theatre Organization has to offer, the New Victory Theatre for children, the re-restored Hilton Theatre (originally the Lyric and Apollo), and a 25-screen Loew's Multiplex (the Empire and Liberty Theatres), as well as BB King's Blues Club, an Internet Café, Madame Tussaud's, and a dozen fast-food places that are clean and safe.

The spillover to the other streets as you walk uptown is evident on every block, and much of this we owe to Disney. So why the "hate" part? It's the company's approach to theater that distresses me. "The Lion King," "Beauty and the Beast," and "Tarzan" are all merely merchandising vehicles, created primarily as a launching pad for toys, dolls, and theme-park rides.

This business strategy makes the musicals the stars -- the actors are commodities. The radio commercials don't even mention who plays the role of Mary! If ever there was a break-out star from any of Disney's productions, it was Heather Headley in "Lion King." There hasn't been another one since. And so it goes with "Mary Poppins."

Ashley Brown, as most people are saying, is no Julie Andrews. Well of course she isn't. No one is, and that criticism is irrelevant. What is relevant though, is that the actor who plays Mary ought to have some magical spark, and Brown, though lovely, sweet-voiced, and charming, is terribly ordinary.

Julian Fellowes' book, however, is surprisingly honest in its handling of bratty children and a troubled marriage. Adhering closely to P. L. Travers' novels, there is substance to this story not found in the film version. Rebecca Luker and Daniel Jenkins are superb as Mr. and Mrs. Banks, and their marital woes and George's painful childhood go far in making this story interesting to grownups.

Gavin Lee gives a jubilant performance as Bert (worthy successor to Dick Van Dyke), as do Jane Carr as Mrs. Brill (the cook), and Ruth Gottschall as Miss Andrew (George's sadistic nanny).

The sets, as you would expect, are imaginative and complicated, an engineering feat to be sure, the choreography inventive and spirited, and the music. . . well . . . supercallifragiliistic -- you know. "Mary Poppins" will play forever, just like Disney's other shows, with unknown actors shuffled through the roles like interns. And anyone with a pretty face and a pleasant voice can be Mary.

Most children, however, really don't know the difference between great and mediocre performances, and they will love the show, as will you because, in the end, you'll enjoy seeing your children have such a good time.

Tickets, or course, are difficult to get right now, but by January or February, when things are slow in the Theatre District, and New York is gray and dreary, you should be able to snag a few for your family. One word of caution though: no children under 10. It will not only bore the little ones, it might also scare them.

Barbara Mehlman

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What the critics had to say.....

BEN BRANTLEY of the NEW YORK TIMES: “Handsome, homily-packed and rather tedious show." & "Even young children with great patience (is that an oxymoron?) may grow restless with the implicit lecturing between those moments when Mary flies, literally and figuratively." & "But with all due respect, that heavy invisible volume on family counseling that you (Mary Poppins) tote around with you makes it hard for any magical nanny to fly beyond familiar horizons."

JOE DZIEMIANOWICZ of the NEW YORK DAILY NEWS: "Nobody does magical entertainment like Disney - except Cameron Mackintosh. The two have teamed up for the musical 'Mary Poppins,' which opened last night on Broadway and won't be going anywhere for a long time. It is a roof-raising, toe-tapping, high-flying extravaganza." & "Ashley Brown is a joy to watch as the enigmatic nanny who helps the Banks family - George and Winifred and their children, Michael and Jane - realize how much they need each other."

CLIVE BARNES of THE NEW YORK POST: "LOVELY!" & " 'Mary Poppins' was fine as a Disney movie and is even better as this Broadway musical." & " 'Mary Poppins' looks and sounds complete - a perfectly engineered piece of musical theater." & "The staging by Richard Eyre and co-director Matthew Bourne and choreography (Bourne and Stephen Mear) seem seamless, although perhaps Bourne, with a set of smoothly energized and imaginative dance numbers, deserves the most laurels."

MICHAEL SOMMERS of STAR-LEDGER: "Resembles a vast, elaborate clockwork toy of yesteryear. It's festooned with an array of bells, whistles and cute mechanical figures. Whether kids will be thrilled by such a vintage gadget is debatable. Adults are likely to mix fond smiles with yawns. While the energetic Sherman Brothers parts of the score are enjoyable, the cluttered musical isn't as wonderful as hoped." & "This over-stuffed version of 'Mary Poppins' strives very hard to satisfy viewers. Sometimes it succeeds. But for a show about enchantment in everyday life, isn't magic supposed to seem effortless?"

LINDA WINER of NEWSDAY: "A quaint, muddled, beautiful-looking musical with plenty of spectacle but even more emotional distance."

ROBERT FELDBERG of THE RECORD: "If thorough competence -- covering all the bases, dotting the i's, crossing the t's -- were the goal of a Broadway musical, "Mary Poppins" would be a standout. The long-awaited, very expensive-looking British import, which opened Thursday night at the New Amsterdam Theatre, has all the standard essentials: talented performers who sing, dance and act well; elaborate production numbers; a well-loved story. What's missing is inspiration, the imaginative spark that snaps a musical to life and makes the audience go 'Wow!'"

JACQUES LE SOURD of JOURNAL NEWS: "The kid-friendly hit of the year has arrived. This show is indeed, to quote one of its sparkling new songs and a self-appraisal by Mary Poppins, "Practically Perfect. So, go." & "The dances, together with Bob Crowley's extraordinarily detailed sets and costumes, contribute to the lush grandeur of a real Broadway musical - the kind we haven't seen in a long time."

PETER MARKS of the WASHINGTON POST: "Anyone hoping that this show -- staged by director Richard Eyre and choreographer Matthew Bourne -- would provide much in the way of robust musical pleasure or emotional sustenance is likely to find it a wee bit of a letdown." & "A bigger problem has to do with the portrayal of Mary herself. It's clear that Mary, as drawn in the stories of P.L. Travers, was never meant to be as saccharine as "A Spoonful of Sugar" makes her out. In this incarnation, however, she's neither sweet nor sour: She has almost no personality at all. In the placid mien and clipped vowels of Ashley Brown, Mary seems not so much a calming influence as she does an automaton. She walks and talks with a robotic briskness."

MICHAEL KUCHWARA of ASSOCIATED PRESS: "Watching 'Mary Poppins,' the Disney-Cameron Mackintosh extravaganza now on view at the New Amsterdam Theatre, is a little like eating an entire box of expensive chocolates — all by yourself. You may end up feeling a bit overstuffed, but, boy, the experience will be fun. Tasty, too." & "Yet at its heart, this is a small story, a family drama that is resolved with the help of a determined, thoroughly directed young woman. That this human and humane story shines through all the dazzling theatrical effects demonstrates the potency of its emotional impact."

External links to full reviews from newspapers

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