KUALA LUMPUR, July 1 — After two and a half gruelling days of non-stop auditions, the final 17 Malaysian Von Trapp children for the Broadway production of The Sound of Music production have been chosen.

Some 800 hopefuls were narrowed down to the 17 chosen best performers for three separate casts at Dominus Art Venue, Fairview International School, Wangsa Maju recently.

They will join the New York cast of adults in the upcoming Broadway production of The Sound of Music at Istana Budaya on December 27.

"When they called my number I couldn’t believe it, I started crying because I was so happy.” Natasha Tan, one of the kids who will be playing the role of Brigita told Malay Mail.

"I feel very exhausted because of the past few days. But I feel it’s so surreal that it's actually happening. I feel like I’m in a dream.”

"As parents we do our best to support Natasha and her musical passion, we are very proud of her." father Andy Tan added.

In a press conference yesterday, Tremendous Entertainment group CEO Chantal Prudhomme praised Malaysian’s love for musicals.

"We knew we had talent here in Malaysia, we are grateful to show this classic musical coming out of the pandemic,” Prudhomme said.

"So many parents and children came early and had long days, waiting from 6 am to 7pm Yet everyone was happy just to participate.”

Tremendous Entertainment Chairman Datuk Jared Lim (left) and CEO Chantal Prudhomme at the Sound of Music press conference. — Picture courtesy of Base Entertainment Asia
Tremendous Entertainment Chairman Datuk Jared Lim (left) and CEO Chantal Prudhomme at the Sound of Music press conference. — Picture courtesy of Base Entertainment Asia

Associate tour director Anthony C. Daniel and tour choreographer James Gray spoke on the dedication and talent of the children.

"The kids we auditioned had phenomenal talent, we were blown away,” Daniel said

"Each kid we chose brought a part of their unique personality to their roles, they could sing and dance well without any formal training.”

Gray found sorting out the right kids difficult, but it felt rewarding seeing the talent of the local kids.

Tour director Anthony C. Daniel (left) and tour choreographer James Gray (right) were impressed at the local hopefuls' talents. - Picture courtesy of Base Entertainment Asia
Tour director Anthony C. Daniel (left) and tour choreographer James Gray (right) were impressed at the local hopefuls' talents. - Picture courtesy of Base Entertainment Asia

Prudhomme also revealed plans by Broadway International and Base Entertainment Asia to start a broadway academy to nurture talent in Malaysia.

"We have the next three to four years planned out,” Prudhomme told the Malay Mail.

"With the academy we will train the next generation of performers locally, allowing links to Broadway and the West End.”

Tickets for The Sound of Music are available online now.