Fifty years ago, Julie Andrews wowed audiences the world over with her turn as Maria Rainer in "The Sound of Music."

Maria is a young Austrian woman studying to become a nun in 1938. She's sent to the home of Captain Von Trapp, a retired naval officer, to be the governess to his seven children.

Maria is one of the most iconic roles in musical theater, and tackling it now for a national tour which kicked off recently in L.A. is a young woman named Kerstin Anderson.

If you've never heard of her, that's little surprise. Kerstin was a sophomore at Pace University in New York before auditioning for the role. And making the decision to put college on hold to jump into the production, she says, wasn't easy.

"My Type A personality was like, 'What are you doing straying from your four year plan?' Anderson says. "But this is what I want to be doing, so I eventually came to the conclusion that if this is what you want to be doing and you have the opportunity to do it, you better do it."

To hear the full interview with Kerstin Anderson, click the player above. 

"The Sound of Music" is currently playing at the Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre through October 31st.