Although there are not quite as many of them, Michael, Maria, Margaret and Melissa Berkowitz, bring the talented children of "The Sound of Music's" Von Trapp family to mind. The McLean siblings will be singing and dancing together in the Great Falls Players upcoming production of "Stop the World I Want to Get Off." It is the first time that all four have been in a show together.
"I've done shows with Melissa and Margaret together, but not with Michael," said Maria Berkowitz, 9, and a student at Spring Hill Elementary School.
Although Maria wants to be a veterinarian, she still enjoys participating in the performing arts.
"I like that when you're on stage you tend to be a whole other person," she said.
At 6, Michael is the youngest of the group, but the Country Day School student is already showing an affinity for the spotlight.
"I like being on stage by myself," said Michael, although he admits that "the dance steps are hard."
Melissa, 15, and a student at The Madeira School, says that she has enjoyed the experience of being a show with all of her siblings, although they do not always get to rehearse together.
"We all have different schedules, but the whole process is fun and the end result is very rewarding," she said.
Of the four, Margaret Berkowitz, 12, is the only one dead-set on becoming an actress.
"It's so much fun," said Margaret, a student at Holy Child. "I love singing and dancing — I've been dancing for seven years."
Mike Scott, the producer of the show and a member of the Great Falls Players Board, said he is continually blown away by the talent and energy of the Berkowitz siblings, especially given the fact that they all have many other academic and extra-curricular commitments.
"These four kids are unbelievable," said Scott. "They are all very musically talented."
THE GREAT FALLS PLAYERS production of the British musical comedy "Stop the World I Want to Get Off," opens at the McLean Community Center's Alden Theatre on May 12.
"I saw the show many years ago and I adored it, and I persuaded the Great Falls board to do it," said Scott. "I adore the music of Anthony Newley."
The musical tells the tale of Littlechap, an Englishman who has no money and no prospects.
"But he has a lot of charm, and through this charm he marries his boss's daughter and gets a series of better jobs in the company, and then runs for Parliament, and then gets knighted by the Queen," said Scott. "He discovers later in life that the best thing he ever did was marry his wife Evie... the last song is very, very touching."
The show's director Roland Gomez, calls the show "a director's dream."
"It's unique because you can really be creative and do all kinds of things — it really lends itself to that kind of creativity," said Gomez, who has directed close to 80 shows, and was formerly a professional director. "It's also close to my heart because it's the last show I did professionally as an actor."
THE SHOW presents a challenge in that so much of its success relies on the two very demanding lead roles of Littlechap and Evie.
"This was once called a one-man show," said Scott. "If you do this show without having a good male lead, it just doesn't work. We were lucky enough to get Russell Maitland."
Maitland, who moved to Northern Virginia from New York about two months ago, has embraced his role as Littlechap with enthusiasm and said he does not mind the challenge.
"The female lead is just as difficult," said Maitland, who formerly ran his own performing arts school and theater company in New Jersey. "She and I are on the entire show, and I literally have over 400 lines and 10 vocal numbers. It's very demanding on us, but we're really excited."
The role of Evie is actually four roles, requiring four different accents.
"She plays with different accents Littlechap's girlfriends that he has in Russia, Germany and the United States," said Scott.
Gomez is confident that the show will be a success because he has worked with the musical director, choreographer and costume designer on previous shows, and knows that they are a talented group. Gomez says he has one other secret to his success.
"One of the things that I do as a director — and I find it works well — is I never start my rehearsals on time," he said. "The actors get to know each other and I think that's what helps ensemble work."