'Mary Poppins' to return to Ahmanson Theatre in August Mary Poppins and her magic carpetbag will return to the Ahmanson Theatre this summer for a limited four-week engagement, Center Theatre Group announced Thursday. The family-friendly musical is scheduled to run Aug. 9 through Sept. 2, and will be the last production in the Ahmanson's current season. "Mary Poppins" previously ran at the Ahmanson from November 2009 to February 2010. The musical, a co-production between Disney and Cameron Mackintosh, is based on the books by P.L. Travers, with songs from the 1964 movie, along with some new numbers. The book is by Julian Fellowes, the writer and creator of TV's "Downton Abbey." During its initial L.A. run, Times theater critic Charles McNulty wrote in his review that "live-in nannies may be a thing of the past, but the story of a cold, uptight banker who discovers his humanity at home after his career falls off the hinges is like some kind of post-Lehman Brothers-WaMu fairy tale." The musical opened on Broadway at the New Amsterdam Theatre in 2006 and is still running. The L.A. engagements are part of the musical's North American tour. Theater review: 'Mary Poppins' at the Ahmanson Theatre A very familiar face returns to 'Mary Poppins' Theater review: 'Fela!' at the Ahmanson Theatre Photo: A scene from the musical "Mary Poppins." Credit: Joan Marcus