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Mickey larson (left) plays Maria and Sterling Hanks plays Captain von Trapp in the Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday cast of "The Sound of Music." (RON RUSSEll/CenterPoint Theatre)

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Angie Winegar (left) plays Maria and Jan Smith plays Mother Abbess in the Monday/Wednesday/Friday cast of "The Sound of Music." (RON RUSSEll/CenterPoint Theatre)

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Centerpoint Legacy Theatre opens the musical theater classic, “The Sound of Music,” on Monday.

It’s a show beloved by actors as well as audiences. More than 300 Utah residents auditioned for the 76 roles, divided between two casts of 38.

Mickey Larson, of Roy, the theatre’s marketing director, was one of the lucky hopefuls to secure a role. She plays Maria in the Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday cast.

“This musical has a certain personality that I really connect with,” Larson said, a 2012 Weber State Performing Arts graduate, perhaps best know to WSU audiences for her soaring portrayal of Peter Pan.

Larson’s relationship with “The Sound of Music” goes back 18 years. In 1996, she played Gretl, the youngest child in “The Sound of Music,” in a production in which her mother, Willard actress Nedra Pace, played the Mother Abbess. Larson played Gretl’s older sister, Brigitta, in a later production. She is excited to be in the show for a third time as Maria, and said she and her mother will share the stage once again.

Pace is well-known in the theater community for her roles at Heritage Community Theatre. This is Pace’s first time performing at Centerpoint Legacy Theatre. She plays the Mother Abbess with the Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday cast.

Weber State University voice instructor Maurie Tarbox, of Kaysville, said she is excited to take the helm as director to a show she said is a favorite among many of her cast members.

Larson has not been on stage for four years, due to the demands of her career and starting a family, she said. Winning roles hasn’t been as easy as she hoped, Larson said, but she is excited to have landed “Maria,” a role on her bucket list.

The show’s story is familiar. The Mother Abbess is head of the Abbey in Austria where young Maria hopes to take her vows as a nun. Seeing Maria is a free spirit, Mother Abbess decides to send her to work as a governess for widower Captain von Trapp so that she can gain more life experience before devoting her life to nunnery.

Maria soon wins the hearts of the seven von Trapp children, who range in age from 5 to 16, by playing with them and teaching them to sing. Well-known songs from the show include “Edelweiss,” “My Favorite Things,” “Do-Re-Mi,” and “The Sound of Music.”

Captain von Trapp is also taken by Maria’s charm. But the family must make a difficult decision when the German Nazis invade Austria and insist Captain von Trapp join their army.

Larson said she is enjoying Maria’s strength and spirit, kindness and irreverence. Larson also has loved working with the cast of children.

“They are so honest and lovable on-stage,” she said.

David Marsden, of West Bountiful, is a regular actor at Centerpoint Legacy Theatre. He plays Uncle Max, a role he has played in two other productions.

“It was my first role in a high school musical,” he said.

Max, a character role, is well suited to his personality and style, Marsden said. He has worked with Tarbox as a fellow cast-member in previous productions, but said this is his first experience with her as a director.

“She has so much dazzling personality and so much knowledge about the show. She really loves what she is doing,” he said.

Tarbox said one of the most enjoyable parts about directing this production has been seeing the connections cast members have with the show.

“So many people have been involved with it somewhere else,” she said.

Sterling Jensen, of Bountiful, played Captain von Trapp opposite Tarbox when she played Maria in a production 20 years ago. He plays Captain von Shriver this time, and his daughter and granddaughter are cast as Frau Schmidt and Brigitta.

Tarbox has also been impressed with the children in the cast.

“They are so full of enthusiasm,” she said.

Tarbox said she is excited for audiences to enjoy a live enactment of a beloved musical that will leave them humming the tunes on their way out the door.