For the first time ever, a leading role in a stage production was chosen by the people of the U.K., tuning in weekly to a popular BBC reality TV show “How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?”  Show producer Andrew Lloyd Webber was one of the judges, guiding the contest – but it was the British people who chose Connie Fisher as Maria. She helped propel the production to enormous success.  Directed by Jeremy Sams, it opened at the London Palladium Theatre on November 15, 2006. The production was nominated for an Olivier Award and ran through the winter of 2009.