Sweet Charity was an opportunity Mary Poppins actor couldn't resist

Verity Hunt-Ballard is making a departure from her last Sydney performance as Mary Hoppins.

She's no longer ...

THE last time Verity Hunt-Ballard performed in Sydney she flew over the heads of the audience as Mary Poppins in Cameron Mackintosh's award-winning musical.

Now, she is taking on another starring role - as Charity Hope Valentine in the musical Sweet Charity - but this time in a gritty, intimate production in a 115-seat theatre.

Sweet Charity has been chosen to launch the new Hayes Theatre Co, which is turning the former Darlinghurst Theatre in Potts Point into a home for small-scale musicals and cabaret. The exciting initiative looks set to shake up musical theatre in Sydney.

"The last role I played was in 2000-seat theatres, which is a different discipline in a way, a different way of storytelling," says Hunt-Ballard.

"(Sweet Charity) is a play with music essentially. It's really exciting to me because I haven't done a small piece for many years."

Verity Hunt-Ballard plays Charity in a new production of Sweet Charity.

For the past year, Hunt-Ballard has been focused on raising her baby daughter with partner Scott Johnson who she met when they were performing together in Jersey Boys. However, Sweet Charity was too special an opportunity to resist.

The 1966 musical tells the story of the eternally optimistic Charity, a hostess in a seedy dance hall who dreams of being rescued from her job by love and marriage.

The Hayes Theatre Co production is directed by Dean Bryant whose many musical theatre credits include working as associate director on Priscilla, Queen of the Desert around the world.

"Dean's vision is quite gritty, quite dark and very influenced by Nights of Cabiria, the Federico Fellini film that Sweet Charity was based on, which focuses more on the fact that Charity is a prostitute," says Hunt-Ballard.

"She really has no skills, no support and she has to do this to survive.

"Dean is really excited that we are performing in the Cross because we really want it to feel like you are stepping into what could be any club (in the area)."

Sweet Charity, Hayes Theatre Co, Potts Point, February 7 - March 9. Bookings: hayestheatre.com.au or 0498 960 586.