THE WORLD PREMIERE
of Andrew Lloyd Webber's new musical
WHISTLE DOWN THE WIND
Directed by Harold Prince
took place at the National Theatre, Washington
DC, December 6, 1996
WHISTLE DOWN THE WIND Lyrics
are by Jim Steinman, and the book is by Andrew Lloyd Webber and
Patricia Kopp. The scenic design was by Andrew Jackness, costumes
by Florence Klotz, lighting by Howell Binkley and sound design
by Martin Levan. The orchestrations were by David Cullen and Andrew
Lloyd Webber and choreography by Joey McKneely. The production
was directed by 20-time Tony Award winner Harold Prince.
The
show played a nine-week World Premiere Engagement at the National
Theatre, December 6 1996 through February 9, 1997, prior to a
planned Broadway opening first set for April, 1997, delayed until
June, 1997, and then "indefinitely postponed."
"I have to agree that more time is required than we currently
have ... to complete the work we all know must be done," director
Harold Prince said in a statement." Mr. Prince had a conflicting
commitment and had to leave Washington afte the opening, in order
to direct another show. Mr. Lloyd Webber added: "I believe, possibly
because it was originally conceived for the cinema, Whistle
has not found its stage voice"
The
musical was then 'reworked' and 'restructured' for it's West End
opening, with the addition of some new songs. The musical, revised,
previewed at the Aldwych
Theatre in London on 22 June 1998, Opened 1 July and Closed
6 January 2001, having played two-and-one-half years.
The musical follows the fortunes
of a criminal outcast, caught between the prejudice of adults
and the innocence of the young. It is set in America's Deep South
in the late fifties. The film on whihc the musical is based was
set in the north of England and tells the story ofthree children
who harbor an escaped convict - convinced that he is Jesus. This
musical moves the story to the time and place where the word 'teenager'
was invented, adding explosive rock music and hauntingly beautiful
love songs
Whistle Down The Wind
is based on the original novel by Mary Hayley Bell and the film
produced by Richard Attenborough and directed by Bryan Forbes
from a screenplay by Keith Waterhouse and Willis Hall.
Set in a sleepy backwater
town in 1959 Louisiana, three days before Christmas, Whistle
Down The Wind tells the story of three children who discover
a stranger hiding in their barn. They believe the man to be Christ
and in their innocence feel a need to hide him from the adults
in the small community. Each child
fears he will be harmed as happened once before. At the same time
the adults have been hiding the news from the children that a
prisoner from a nearby penitentiary has escaped and may be at-large
in their town. Ambiguity then surrounds the remainder of the story
and we are never quite sure whether the
innocence of the children or the experience of the parents and
elders is to be believed.
