I SPENT a wonderful evening in the company of the Von Trapp family, courtesy of Carpet Trades Operatic Society.

Director Darren Richards' wife, Sarah, starred as Maria.

She has a beautiful voice, and played the part well.

I particularly enjoyed her version of The Lonely Goatherd.

Playing opposite her as Georg, Charles Combes acted out his role competently, though occasionally struggled to keep on key in the songs.

Chris Payne was outstanding as Max, the friend of the family who always puts himself first.

And, as always Jill Parmenter was good - as Elsa, who cannot live with the captain's unshakeable views.

Kathryn Knight is a great prospect for future shows, taking the part of Liesl confidently.

Claire Hadland was the ideal choice for the Mother Abbess - her rendition of Climb Every Mountain was spine-chilling.

Among the actors in supporting roles, Melaine Greenfield stood out as Frau Schmidt.

Of course, the children stole the show. There are two sets of children, alternating performances.

I saw the Snowflakes, comprising Thomas Paine (Friedrich), Abigail Minnock (Louisa), Jack Ludwig (Kurt), Laura Hall (Brigitta), Abby Watson (Marta) and Lauren Soley (Gretl).

None of them showed any sign of nerves, all knew their lines well, and came in on cue.

Only one performance was disappointing. The character of Rolf, played by Louis Oliver, was nowhere near as strong as the role demands.

There were a couple of over-long scene changes, and at the start there was trouble with the microphones, but this did not detract from my enjoyment.

Members of the audience would have liked a "sing-a-long" at the end, as everyone knows those familiar songs, and always enjoy joining in with such as Do-Re-Mi, My Favourite Things and Edelweiss.

However, this was a good production, and I enjoyed revisiting those familiar characters again.

VJS