Op zoek naar Maria
Op zoek naar Maria is a talent competition program that aired in Belgium on VTM. It premiered on 25 March 2009.
The premise of the series was to find a musical theatre performer to play the role of Maria von Trapp in the 2009 and Roel Vente revival of The Sound of Music at the Efteling Theatre. The show is hosted by Koen Wauters and featured, Linda Lepomme, and Peter de Smet as the judges for the show.
Following a public telephone vote, 27-year-old was chosen as Maria with 25-year-old Fleur Brusselmans as the runner up and Liv Van Aelst in third place.
A commercial advertising the show, featuring over 200 dancers in it, seemingly spontaneously, to "Do-Re-Mi" in Antwerpen-Centraal railway station, has received over 20,000,000 hits on YouTube.
A similar format of Op zoek naar Maria has been used as well in The Netherlands in 2021 taking an unknown singer and placing the winner in the lead role of Maria for the 2021 performances in The Netherlands. The show is hosted by Frits Sissing and featured Pia Douwes, Jamai Loman, Carline Brouwer and Richard Groenendijk as the judges for the show. It was the fifth Dutch talent show to be produced by AVRO, 10 years after Op zoek naar Evita, Op zoek naar Joseph, Op zoek naar Mary Poppins, Op zoek naar Zorro and Op zoek naar Annie. In the final, on 4 April, Nandi Van Beurden was announced as the winner of the series. This was followed by Op zoek naar Danny & Sandy in late 2022, which was won by Tristan van der Lingen and Danique Graanoogst.
A similar format has been used as well in the United Kingdom in 2006, with the show How Do You Solve a Problem like Maria? taking an unknown singer and placing the winner in the lead role for the 2006 performances in the West End. On 16 September 2006, Connie Fisher was announced the winner of this show.
Belgium
Finalists
Eleven contestants made it through the audition rounds and performed during the live shows.| Finalist | Age* | From | Dress Colour | Status |
| Dorien Ackx | 25 | Geel | Pink | Eliminated 1st in week 1 |
| Helen Geets | 33 | Merksem | Green | Eliminated 2nd in week 2 |
| Ellen Vandervieren | 28 | Beveren | Yellow | Eliminated 3rd in week 3 |
| Sandra Paelinck | 23 | Mortsel | Dark Blue | Eliminated 4th in week 4 |
| Marian Van Klaveren | 31 | Lede | Purple | Quit in week 5 |
| Elisabeth Herman | 26 | Wetteren | Red | Eliminated 5th in week 6 |
| Elke Buyle | 23 | Duffel | Light yellow | Eliminated 6th in week 7 |
| Katrien Smets | 22 | Tienen | Light Blue | Eliminated 7th in week 8 |
| Liv Van Aelst | 34 | Brasschaat | Orange | Third place |
| Fleur Brusselmans | 25 | Ghent | Lavender | Second place |
| Deborah De Ridder | 27 | Antwerp | Pale Blue | Winner |
Live shows
The live shows saw the finalists eliminated one by one following both individual and group performances. Once eliminated, the leaving contestant ended the program by leading a performance of "Adieu, vaarwel " from The Sound of Music with the remaining contestants.Week 1 (April 8, 2009)
Following the first week of the competition, Dorien was the first Maria to be eliminated from the competition. The show performances were:- Group performances:
- *"How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?"
- *"Don't Stop Me Now"
| Contestant | Performance Pair | Order | Song | Result |
| Dorien Ackx | Pair 1 | 1 | "Sweet About Me" | Bottom 2 |
| Elisabeth Herman | Pair 1 | 2 | "All by Myself" | Bottom 2 |
| Marian van Klaveren | Pair 2 | 3 | "Over the Rainbow" | Safe |
| Fleur Brusselmans | Pair 2 | 4 | "I Kissed a Girl" | Safe |
| Deborah De Ridder | Solo Performance | 5 | "I Want You Back" | Safe |
| Liv van Aelst | Pair 3 | 6 | "So What" | Safe |
| Elke Buyle | Pair 3 | 7 | "Chasing Pavements" | Safe |
| Katrien Smets | Pair 4 | 8 | "Samson" | Safe |
| Ellen Vandervieren | Pair 4 | 9 | "I Say a Little Prayer" | Safe |
| Sandra Paelinck | Pair 5 | 10 | "Mad About You" | Safe |
| Helen Geets | Pair 5 | 11 | "Flashdance... What a Feeling" | Safe |
Sing-Off
| Act | Sing Off Song | Results |
| Dorien Ackx | "One of Us" from Mamma Mia | Eliminated |
| Elisabeth Herman | "One of Us" from Mamma Mia | Saved by Verlinde |
Week 2 (April 15, 2009)
The show performances were:- Group performances:
- *"How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?"
- *"Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves"
| Contestant | Performance Pair | Order | Song | Result |
| Deborah De Ridder | Pair 1 | 1 | "It's Oh So Quiet" | Bottom 2 |
| Liv van Aelst | Pair 1 | 2 | "Licence to Kill" | Safe |
| Marian van Klaveren | Pair 2 | 3 | "9 to 5" | Safe |
| Ellen Vandervieren | Pair 2 | 4 | "Stepping Stone" | Safe |
| Sandra Paelinck | Pair 3 | 5 | "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" | Safe |
| Helen Geets | Pair 3 | 6 | "One Moment in Time" | Bottom 2 |
| Elisabeth Herman | Solo Performance 1 | 7 | "Fever" | Safe |
| Fleur Brusselmans | Solo Performance 2 | 8 | "Hopelessly Devoted to You" | Safe |
| Katrien Smets | Pair 4 | 9 | "Love Song" | Safe |
| Elke Buyle | Pair 4 | 10 | "I Don't Want to Dance" | Safe |
Sing-Off
| Act | Sing Off Song | Results |
| Deborah De Ridder | "I Know Him So Well" from Chess | Saved by Verlinde |
| Helen Geets | "I Know Him So Well" from Chess | Eliminated |
Week 3 (April 22, 2009)
The show performances were:- Group performances:
- *"My Favorite Things"
- *"Get the Party Started"
| Contestant | Performance Pair | Order | Song | Result |
| Katrien Smets | Pair 1 | 1 | "Sparkling Diamonds" | Safe |
| Sandra Paelinck | Pair 1 | 2 | "One Day I'll Fly Away" | Bottom 2 |
| Elke Buyle | Pair 2 | 3 | "Dag vreemde man" | Safe |
| Ellen Vandervieren | Pair 2 | 4 | "Cabaret" | Bottom 2 |
| Marian van Klaveren | Solo Performance 1 | 5 | "Sway" | Safe |
| Liv van Aelst | Pair 3 | 6 | "Because of You" | Safe |
| Fleur Brusselmans | Pair 3 | 7 | "The Boy Does Nothing" | Safe |
| Deborah De Ridder | Solo Performance 2 | 8 | "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" | Safe |
| Elisabeth Herman | Solo Performance 3 | 9 | "Papa" | Safe |
Sing-Off
| Act | Sing Off Song | Results |
| Sandra Paelinck | "Take That Look Off Your Face" from Tell Me on a Sunday | Saved by Verlinde |
| Ellen Vandervieren | "Take That Look Off Your Face" from Tell Me on a Sunday | Eliminated |
Week 4 (April 29, 2009)
The show performances were:- Group performances:
- *"The Sound of Music"
- *"Dreamgirls"
| Contestant | Performance Pair | Order | Song | Result |
| Fleur Brusselmans | Pair 1 | 1 | "Big Spender" | Safe |
| Liv van Aelst | Pair 1 | 2 | "Hij kan niet zonder mij '" | Safe |
| Elisabeth Herman | Pair 2 | 3 | "If I Were a Boy" | Bottom 2 |
| Deborah De Ridder | Pair 2 | 4 | "Mannen '" | Safe |
| Sandra Paelinck | Solo Performance 1 | 5 | "Al de jazz '" | Bottom 2 |
| Marian van Klaveren | Pair 3 | 6 | "Afscheid nemen bestaat niet" | Safe |
| Elke Buyle | Pair 3 | 7 | "Mamma Mia" | Safe |
| Katrien Smets | Solo Performance 2 | 8 | "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" | Safe |
Sing-Off'''
| Act | Sing Off Song | Results |
| Elisabeth Herman | "For Once in My Life" by Stevie Wonder | Saved by Verlinde |
| Sandra Paelinck | "For Once in My Life" by Stevie Wonder | Eliminated |
Week 5 (May 6, 2009)
The show performances were:- Group performances:
- *"The Lonely Goatherd"
- *"Ain't No Mountain High Enough"
| Contestant | Performance Pair | Order | Song | Result |
| Elke Buyle | Pair 1 | 1 | "Non, je ne regrette rien" | Safe |
| Liv van Aelst | Pair 1 | 2 | "I Feel Pretty | Safe |
| Elisabeth Herman | Solo Performance 1 | 3 | "Shout" | Safe |
| Katrien Smets | Pair 2 | 4 | "Na Die Ontmoeting '" | Safe |
| Fleur Brusselmans | Pair 2 | 5 | "Brussel" | Safe |
| Marian van Klaveren | Solo Performance 2 | 6 | "Makin' Whoopee" | Withdrew |
| Deborah De Ridder | Solo Performance 3 | 7 | "When You Believe" | Safe |
- Sing-off:'''
- *Due to Marian van Klaveren's withdrawal, there was no sing-off that week.
Week 6 (May 13, 2009)
The show performances were:- Group performances:
- *"I Have Confidence"
- *"Do-Re-Mi" featuring the children, who will play as the Von Trapp children in the upcoming Flemish revival of The Sound of Music
- *"Cell Block Tango"
| Contestant | Order | Song | Result |
| Deborah De Ridder | "Ik leef voor jou" | Safe | |
| Elisabeth Herman | "Het is over" | Eliminated | |
| Elke Buyle | "Huil niet om mij, Argentina '" | Safe | |
| Fleur Brusselmans | "I Could Have Danced All Night" | Safe | |
| Katrien Smets | "Hij speelt een spel '" | Safe | |
| Liv van Aelst | "Roxanne" | Bottom two |
- Sing-off:
- *Elisabeth Herman and Liv van Aelst were in the sing-off, and performed "De roos" by Ann Christy.
- *Albert Verlinde chose to save Liv and bid farewell to Elisabeth.
Week 7 (May 20, 2009)
In the quarter-final, the seventh Maria to be eliminated was Elke. The show performances were:- Group performances:
- *"Dingen waar ik zoveel van hou"
- *"Don't Rain on My Parade"
| Contestant | Order | First song | Order | Second song | Result |
| Deborah De Ridder | "Buenos Aires" | "Heel alleen '" | Safe | ||
| Elke Buyle | "Meisje en het beest '" | "Good Morning Baltimore" | Eliminated | ||
| Fleur Brusselmans | "Jij woont in mijn hart '" | "Popular" | Safe | ||
| Katrien Smets | "Ik ben een brassband '" | "Maybe This Time" | Safe | ||
| Liv van Aelst | "Get Happy" | "Al je koffers op de gang maar weer '" | Eliminated |
- Sing-off:'
- *Elke Buyle and Liv van Aelst were in the sing-off, and performed "The Winner Takes It All" from the musical Mamma Mia''.
- *Albert Verlinde chose to save Liv and bid farewell to Elke.
Week 8 (May 27, 2009)
In the semi-final, the eighth and final Maria to be eliminated was Katrien. The show performances were:- Group performances:
- *"De boer en de boerin"
- *"Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In"
| Contestant | Order | First song | Order | Second song | Result |
| Deborah De Ridder | "Minutewals" | "Memory" | Safe | ||
| Fleur Brusselmans | "Het glipt door m'n vingers '" | "If You Hadn't, But You Did" | Bottom 2 | ||
| Katrien Smets | "Love You I Do" | "Zalig zijn '" | Eliminated | ||
| Liv van Aelst | "Anyone Who Had a Heart" | "Een nieuw leven '" | Safe |
- Sing-off:'''
- *Fleur Brusselmans and Katrien Smets were in the sing-off, and performed "Let It Be " by The Beatles.
- *Albert Verlinde chose to save Fleur and bid farewell to Katrien.
Week 9 (June 3, 2009)
The show performances were:- Group performances:
- *Finalists and former Marias: "Kunnen we iets beginnen met Maria "
- *Deborah and Fleur: "Ik kan heel de wereld aan "
| Act | Order | Song of the Series | Order | The Sound of Music song | Order | Song | Result |
| Deborah De Ridder | "Voor wie gelooft '" | "De boer en de boerin '" | "Astonishing" | Winner | |||
| Fleur Brusselmans | "The Boy Does Nothing" | "Do-Re-Mi" | "Ik ben de perfectie" '" | Runner-up | |||
| Liv van Aelst | "Hij kan niet zonter mij '" | "Iets waar ik zielsveel van hou '" | N/A | N/A | 3rd Place |
- After being announced as the season winner, Deborah concluded the season with a performance of "De muziek van de hoogste bergen '".
Netherlands
Expert panel
An expert panel provided advice to the contestants throughout the series, and provided comments during the live shows. The panel was made up of:- Pia Douwes,
- Jamai Loman,
- Carline Brouwer,
- Richard Groenendijk,
Live shows
The live shows saw the finalists eliminated one by one following both individual and group performances. Once eliminated, the leaving contestant ended the programme by leading a performance of "Bergen of Dalen" ' from The Sound of Music with the remaining contestants, Unlike the Flemish version of Op zoek naar Maria and the British and Canadian versions of How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria, which their elimination song was "So Long, Farewell" ' from The Sound of Music. After being announced as the winner, Nandi concluded the show with a performance of "Iets Waar Ik Zielsveel Van Hou" .Jury's favourite Maria
- Carline and Pia couldn't make a choice
Performances
Nandi Van Beurden- Week 1 - Leven is cabaret
- Week 2 - Colors of the Wind
- Week 3 - It's Oh So Quiet
- Week 4 - Singin' In The Rain
- Week 5 - Just Give Me a Reason
- Week 6 Song 1 - This Is My Life
- Week 6 Song 2 - Stille liefde
- Week 7 Song 1 - All That Matters
- Week 7 Song 2 - Ergens in de sterren
- Week 7 Song 3 - De muziek van de hoogste bergen
- Week 7 Song 4 - Iets Waar Ik Zielsveel Van Hou
- Week 1 - Something's Got a Hold on Me
- Week 2 - Make You Feel My Love
- Week 3 - Don't Rain On My Parade
- Week 4 - Denk Aan Mij
- Week 5 - River Deep, Mountain High
- Week 6 Song 1 - Heel alleen
- Week 6 Song 2 - Get Happy
- Week 7 Song 1 - And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going
- Week 7 Song 2 - Meer vraag ik niet van jou
- Week 7 Song 3 - De muziek van de hoogste bergen
- Week 1 - Always Remember Us This Way
- Week 2 - Mamma Mia
- Week 3 - Huil niet voor mij Argentina
- Week 4 - All Die Jazz
- Week 5 - I Feel Pretty
- Week 6 Song 1 - Heel even
- Week 6 Song 2 - Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend
- Week 7 Song 1 - Mijn leven is van mij
- Week 7 Song 2 - Beauty and the Beast
- Week 1 - Zeg me dat het niet zo
- Week 2 - How Will I Know
- Week 3 - Roar
- Week 4 - Inspiratie
- Week 5 - One Day I'll Fly Away
- Week 6 Song 1 - Tamelijk Voortreffelijk
- Week 6 Song 2 - Your Song
- Week 1 - Arcade
- Week 2 - Hit the Road Jack
- Week 3 - Kom terug en dans met mij
- Week 4 - Jolene
- Week 5 - Non, je ne regrette rien
- Week 6 Song 1 - Walking on Sunshine
- Week 6 Song 2 - Dit keer
- Week 1 - Popular
- Week 2 - Omarm
- Week 3 - Let's Hear It for the Boy
- Week 4 - Somewhere
- Week 5 - Het dorp
- Week 1 - Somebody to Love
- Week 2 - Hopelessly Devoted To You
- Week 3 - Geef mij nu je angst
- Week 4 - Zeur Niet
- Week 1 - The Lady Is a Tramp
- Week 2 - Door De Wind
- Week 3 - Somewhere Over the Rainbow
- Week 1 - Don't You Worry 'bout a Thing
- Week 2 - Baby One More Time
- Week 1 - Duurt Te Lang
- Week 1 - Medley
- Week 2 - You Can't Hurry Love
- Week 3 - One Night Only
- Week 4 - This Is Me
- Week 5 - A Brand New Day
- Week 6 - Fame
- Week 7 - The Greatest Show
- Week 1 - I'm Still Standing
- Week 2 - The Edge of Glory
- Week 3 - Shake It Off
- Week 4 - Moves like Jagger
- Week 5 - New York, New York
- Week 6 - There's No Business Like Show Business
- Week 7 1 - I Will Follow Him
- Week 7 2 - Nandi & Natascha - De muziek van de hoogste bergen
- Nandi, Natascha & Valerie - Love Me Just A Little Bit More
- Tessa, Jolijn & Anouk - Candyman
- Week 1 - Sylvia & Willemijn - Hallelujah
- Week 2 - Willemijn & Anouk - Laat Me
- Week 3 - Sanne & Tessa - Zonder jou
- Week 4 - Valerie & Renée - I Know Him So Well
- Week 5 - Anouk & Valerie - Avond
- Week 6 - Valerie, Jolijn & Tessa - Nog één kans