To borrow a line from a song, would-be ‘flibertygibbets, will-o-the-wisps and clowns’ will compete in CBC’s How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria? contest, which will commence a seven-week run on Tuesday, June 17 at 8 p.m. ET. The prize, of course, is landing the starring role in a revival of The Sound of Music, set to debut at Toronto’s Royal Alexandra Theatre this fall and then tour North America.

CBC this week announced that the host of the Canadian Idol-style series, produced by the Ceeb in association with Temple Street Productions, will be Gavin Crawford, ensemble member of This Hour Has 22 Minutes. The judging panel will consist of renowned vocal coach Elaine Overholt, veteran performer John Barrowman (Torchwood, Doctor Who) and Simon Lee — the longtime music supervisor and principal conductor for composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, who came up with the show concept. A previous BBC version led to a U.K. production of the same musical.

From Media in Canada