Whistle Down the Wind at the Union Theatre

Dom O'Hanlon
Dom O'Hanlon

Sasha Regan will present a new production of the musical Whistle Down the Wind at the Union Theatre in Southwark, south London, from 28 January to 21 February 2015, with an official opening on 30 January 2015.

The musicals is based on the novel by Mary Hayley Bell and the screenplay by Willis Hall & Keith Waterhouse, as well as the film by Richard Attenborough and Bryan Forbes. It is adapted by Russell Labey and Richard Taylor with music and lyrics by Richard Taylor.

"The time is the late 1950s, the place, a small village in Lancashire. Hurrying to a barn with three rescued kittens, Cathy, a schoolgirl, discovers a stranger hiding there. She recognises Him immediately as Jesus Christ and tells her sister, Nan. The next day their brother Charles also learns of their discovery. They decide to tell nobody, but gradually word spreads through the children of the village. Anxious to protect Jesus from unbelieving adults, they keep His arrival a secret and besides, most of their parents are preoccupied with news of a convict on the loose in the area. Trouble starts when the village bully, Raymond, threatens to give the game away..."

The cast for the production includes Callum McArdle, Grace Osborn, Alex James Ellison, Chris Coleman, Kathyrn Hamilton-Hall, Danielle Morris, Romero Clark, Bryan Hodgson, Oliver Stanley, Sebastion Thomas, Joshua Lewindon, Harry Wright, Edward Crann, Sarah Kate Howarth, Imelda Warren-Green, Ana Richardson, Molly Steere and Donna Marsh.

Whistle Down the Wind will be directed by Sasha Regan with musical direction by David Griffiths. It will feature designs by Nik Corrall and lighting design by Tim Deiling.

Richard Taylor and Russell Labey's adaptation was originally staged in 1989, and is not to be confused with the later Lloyd Webber adaptation. It was most recently presented by the National Youth Music Theatre.

Originally published on

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