So much joy flows from the stage during Mary Poppins that you leave the theatre feeling as high as the kite that young Michael Banks long to fly with his father. The musical really is as “practically perfect” as Mary herself. In fact, there is only one word for it: supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!

Mary Poppins, Sydney Lyric Theatre, 2022. Photo © Daniel Boud

Co-created by Cameron Mackintosh and directed by Richard Eyre, on a wonderfully clever set resembling a Victorian picture book by designer Bob Crowley, with toe-tapping choreography by Matthew Bourne (who co-directs) and Stephen Mear, the production premiered in London in 2004 and has since been seen by tens of millions of people worldwide.

It first flew into Australia in 2010, with Verity Hunt-Ballard as the world’s most loved nanny. Now the show is back, in an even more vibrant staging with the addition of a few new production elements and some extra colourful costuming – and it’s more enchanting than ever.

There are jaw-dropping moments galore including an imploding kitchen magically restored (using illusions by Paul Kieve and Jim Steinmeyer), statues that come to life, Bert’s tap dance along the...