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It’ll cost you over $130 for a good seat at Mary Poppins. But unlike other musical theatre experiences, you’ll skip out feeling you got your money’s worth.

Stage magic like this doesn’t come cheap. This is blockbusting theatre, a dizzying, dazzling spectacle. Mary’s Australian debut presents a stage crowded with talent; a visually transportive, aurally rich, totally immersive experience. It’s what unashamed lovers of grand, glorious musical theatre salivate over.

Spoonful of sugar? More like a teeth-rotting truckload. This is Disney, after all: shamelessly commercial, ubiquitously crowd-pleasing, completely irresistible.

West End wizard Cameron Mackintosh spent years negotiating with Walt’s empire over those timeless songs (from brothers Richard and Robert Sherman) and Australian-born author Pamela Lyndon Travers (reportedly unhappy with the film and reluctant to allow a theatrical creation) to bring Mary to the stage. There’s new songs from George Stiles and Anthony Drewe (Practically Perfect is an instant toe-tapper) and a script from screenwriter Julian Fellowes that uses Travers’ original novel to fill in some blanks.

All the familiar tunes are here: Chim Chim Cher-ee, Step In Time, Let’s Go Fly A Kite, Jolly Holiday; take your pick. The 16-strong orchestra reverberates around the beautifully decorated Her Majesty’s Theatre, the grandiose sets and mind-bending special effects are genuinely eye-popping (scaled down slightly from the Broadway incarnation without losing any of the spectacle) and every performer seems perfectly cast.

The expectation around Verity Hunt-Ballard is thoroughly deserved. The namesake role made famous by Julia Andrews is exhausting and requires great acting skill in balancing Mary’s conceit and charm. With the stiffest of upper lips that curls into a winning smile, the WAAPA graduate does it with aplomb, with a voice that soars as high as she does above the stage. Matt Lee (who dances on the roof, no less, as Bert), Philip Quast and Marina Prior (the Banks parents), Debra Byrne and Judi Connelli lead the all-star cast, and the kids, rudely talented all, are exceptional.

There’s nothing contrary about this Mary. In the best traditions of Disney entertainment it is giddy, all-ages fun.

The details: Mary Poppins is playing Her Majesty’s Theatre in Melbourne. Tickets for shows until November are available at Ticketek.