Andrew's Whistling Dixie ...
by Baz Bamigboye
Daily Mail, Friday 31st March
ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER swopped Lancashire for the Deep South in his (
hey, hang on, what about Jim?!!! - Diane) musical version of Whistle Down The Wind ... and now it's headed in that direction.
Bill Kenwright, who directed the latest production at the Palace Theatre, is planning to tour the musical around America's Bible belt and elsewhere in the U.S. after its 17-week run at the Palace ends. "It's a different world there, Middle America," Bill commented.
"No matter what," he said (echoing one of the shows popular songs), I'm going to make it an American hit." And he also wants it to land on Broadway.
Actually, I thought this production better than the original that ran a few years ago at the Aldwych, in that the director concentrates on the story and score.
At the Aldwych, the set just swamped everything. What's more, Tim Rogers, who plays The Man, has a powerful voice that, in Act 2 particularly, soars along with the score - which I should add is good to hear live.
Watching the show also gives us some clues as to why America's in such a state at the moment, with a lot of the strings being pulled by religious Right-wing reactionaries.
So WDTW could be off to America at last!
Just a note: Baz Bamigboye has been a staunch supporter of WDTW, right from the time it first workshopped in Washington DC.
Diane