RSC Associate Artist Edward Bennett and top singer Katie Bird to play lead roles as The Sound of Music comes to Leeds Grand Theatre

Opera North has announced that leading soprano Katie Bird and star of stage and screen Edward Bennett will be making Leeds alive with The Sound of Music this summer as they take on the leading roles of Maria and Captain von Trapp in the Rodgers & Hammerstein classic musical which plays at Leeds Grand Theatre from 9 July – 1 August 2026.

Edward’s illustrious career includes recent TV appearances as Richard Keen in Lockerbie: A Search for Truth, Lt. General Miles Dempsey in SAS: Rogue Heroes, Walter Dundas in series 3 and 4 of Bridgerton and Peter Mott in series 1, 2 and 3 of Cobra. No stranger to the big screen, his latest film credits include Jean de Cambaceres in Ridley Scott’s Napoleon and TE Lawrence in Benediction directed by Terence Davies. On stage, he has starred in many critically-acclaimed productions, including as Thomas Cromwell in A Man for All Seasons at Bath Theatre Royal and in the West End, as Alan Turing in Breaking the Code at Salisbury Playhouse, and as Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing, Berowne in Love’s Labour’s Lost, Hamlet & Laertes in Hamlet and as Macduff in Macbeth, all for the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC). He now takes on the role of Captain von Trapp, whose life is transformed by novice nun Maria, sung by Katie Bird.

Katie studied at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, the Royal Academy of Music and the National Opera Studio. A member of the Chorus of Opera North, her operatic roles include both Mimì and Musetta in La bohème and Kate Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly for Opera North, Mimì in La bohème and Suzel in L’amico Fritz for Opera Holland Park, and The Governess in The Turn of the Screw for Northern Ireland Opera. Her musical theatre experience includes singing Eliza Doolittle to great acclaim in the Opera North and Leeds Playhouse co-production of My Fair Lady in 2024.

Based on Curve’s production which opened in the Leicester at the end of 2025, the perennially popular classic will be brought to life in the summer by the Chorus and 40-piece Orchestra of Opera North under the direction of Nikolai Foster (Kinky Boots, My Fair Lady, A Chorus Line). Joining him from the original Curve creative team will be Set & Costume Designer Michael Taylor, Lighting Designer Mark Henderson and Choreographer Ebony Molina. Oliver Rundell becomes Musical Director, with Ollie Khurshid as Associate Director and Dale White as Associate Choreographer. Casting Consultant is Becky Paris CDG.

Other cast announcements include, as Mother Abbess, Katherine Broderick, who recently toured with Opera North as Marcellina in Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro. Katherine won the 2007 Kathleen Ferrier Award, studied at the Guildhall School of Music and spent a year at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Leipzig. She has subsequently appeared for opera companies across the globe. Sharing the role of Liesl von Trapp are Canadian soprano Abigail Sinclair and rising star April Perrott.

Several roles are taken by artists from the Chorus of Opera North, the Company’s full-time professional ensemble. These include Kamil Bień as Rolf Gruber, Amy Freston as Baroness Elsa Schraeder, Nicholas Butterfield as Max Detweiler, Molly Barker-Knowles as Sister Berthe, Hannah Mason as Sister Margaretta, Gillene Butterfield as Sister Sophia, Dean Robinson as Franz, Claire Pascoe as Frau Schmidt, Ivan Sharpe as Herr Zeller, Tim Ochala-Greenough as Admiral von Schreiber, Graham Russell as Baron Elberfeld and Helen Évora as Baroness Elberfeld.

Isla Mundell-Perkins, Director of Artistic Administration, Opera North said: “We are delighted to be welcoming so many talented artists to the stage to tell this much-loved story in Leeds. By bringing together incredible acting, exceptional singing and the full Orchestra of Opera North, we can promise an unforgettable show for all the family.”

With Richard Rodgers’ instantly recognisable music and catchy lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, The Sound of Music was an instant hit when it opened on Broadway in 1959. Six years later, the stage performance was followed by the multi-award-winning film starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer. The movie rapidly became a household favourite, remaining a popular choice for family viewing ever since. 

With a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse, the musical tells the tale of Maria, a free-spirited novice nun, who is sent to look after the rowdy von Trapp children. Defying Captain von Trapp’s strict orders, Maria captures the children’s hearts using creativity and music to educate, inspire and bring order into their lives. Soon the entire family falls under her spell and even the captain’s steely heart begins to soften. When he is commanded to report for duty in the German navy however, their Austrian idyll is shattered, as they must flee the Nazis and embark on the most important and dangerous journey of their lives.

Ensuring as many people as possible get the chance to enjoy the musical’s feel-good factor, Under 30s can take advantage of £10 tickets, with £22 seats available through the Leeds Grand Theatre’s Secret Seats scheme for anyone willing to sit anywhere in the auditorium. Both matinees and accessible performances are offered across the run, including Captioned, British Sign Language interpreted and Audio Described with Touch Tours beforehand.

The Sound of Music plays at Leeds Grand Theatre from 9 July – 1 August 2026. Tickets are available here.