“The Sound of Music,” the final show of DeSales University Act 1’s 52nd season, concludes May 8, Main Stage, Labuda Center for the Performing Arts.

“The Sound of Music” was one of one of the “big five” hit musicals written by the team of composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II.

Will Hammerstein, grandson of “The Sound of Music” lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II, spoke following the May 1 performance.

Will Hammerstein is a founding board member of Oscar Hammerstein’s Highland Farm, a non-profit dedicated to the purchase, restoration and preservation of Oscar Hammerstein’s former home in Doylestown Township, Bucks County.

Will Hammerstein helped start the non-profit in 2018 after the historic home was threatened with redevelopment. Highland Farm was where Oscar Hammerstein established his legendary partnership with Rodgers and did most of his writing for the duo’s best-known works, including “Oklahoma!,” “Carousel,” “South Pacific,” “The King and I” and “The Sound of Music.”

Will Hammerstein was to talk about his grandfather’s birth into a theater family in 1895, the major influences of his career, and his death in 1960 at Highland Farm.

He was also to talk about how Oscar Hammerstein mentored a high school student named Stephen Sondheim, and his efforts to turn Highland Farm into a museum dedicated to his grandfather’s legacy.

“The Sound of Music” was inspired by “The Story of the Trapp Family Singers,” the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp.

The musical, set in Austria on the eve of the Anschluss in 1938, tells the story of Maria, who takes a job as governess to a large family while she decides whether to become a nun. She falls in love with the children, and eventually their widowed father, Captain von Trapp.

When Captain von Trapp is ordered to accept a commission in the German navy at the start of World War II, the family decides to flee Austria.

The original 1959 Broadway production won five Tony Awards, including Best Musical, out of nine nominations.

The show is filled with songs that have become musical theater standards, including “Edelweiss,” “My Favorite Things,” “Climb Ev’ry Mountain,” “Do-Re-Mi” and the title song, “The Sound of Music.”

John Bell, who directs the Act 1 production of “The Sound of Music,” says he thinks the show is Rodgers and Hammerstein’s most powerful musical.

“It’s a result of two masters working at their creative peak,” says Bell, DeSales professor of theater. “They managed to tell a love story and a story of healing through a series of songs that tug at the heart and send the spirit soaring.

“It’s also a timeless story about standing up against the threat of extremism and demagoguery, making it particularly resonant today.”

Will Neuert, DeSales associate professor and head of design, created the show’s Nonnberg Abbey, Von Trapp villa and other sets for the production.

New York City costume designer Sam Fleming designed the 1930s costumes.

Eric T. Haugen is lighting designer. David M. Greenberg is sound designer. Vincent Trovato is music director. Christine Baglivio, a 2015 DeSales graduate, is choreographer.

DeSales student Abigail Vernon is Maria in the cast of 34, which includes area children.

“The Sound of Music” April 27 - May 8. Final performances: 2 and 8 p.m. May 7, and 2 p.m. May 8, Main Stage, Labuda Center for the Performing Arts, DeSales University.

The 2 p.m. May 7 performance has open captioning for patrons who are deaf or hard of hearing and audio descriptions for patrons who are blind or visually-impaired. Tickets are half-price for patrons using these special services. Information: Box office manager Kyle Schumaker. 610-282-3654, ext. 1

Face masks are optional in Labuda Center.

Tickets: 610-282-3192, tickets.desales.edu; 610-282-3192

“Curtain Rises” is a column about the theater, stage shows, the actors in them and the directors and artists who make them happen. To request coverage, email: Paul Willistein, Focus editor, pwillistein@tnonline.com.