Whistle down the wind

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Whistle Down the Wind is a musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber (music) and Jim Steinman (lyrics), based on the film of the same name (German title: ... where the wind blows '' ) by Bryan Forbes (1961).

Production history

The world premiere of the play took place on December 12, 1996 at the National Theater in Washington, DC ( USA ). Due to the failure of this production, all further plans for the musical - including the Broadway premiere planned for April 1997 - were given up.

In 1998, however, a concept album was released on which well-known artists (including Tom Jones , Meat Loaf , Bonnie Tyler , Boy George and the Everly Brothers ) interpreted the songs of the show. The success of this album, and especially the single No Matter What by Boyzone (a number 1 hit in 18 countries; the most successful musical single of all time), led to further productions of the musical.

On July 1, 1998, the West End premiere took place at London's Aldwych Theater - with a new director. This production reached over a thousand performances. This was followed by touring productions in Great Britain and the USA as well as a West End revival . In May 2018 the musical premiered in German at the Theater im Neukloster in Wiener Neustadt, Austria, in a translation by Nina Schneider. This German-language version was performed in Giessen in April 2019 by the LLG Musical Company.

action

The musical takes place in 1959: A nameless escaped murderer ( The Man ) is mistaken for Jesus Christ by a group of children in a small town in Louisiana . While the local adults - devout believers - look for the murderer, the children hide him in a barn. When the children's secret comes out, the murderer sets the barn on fire and disappears without a trace. Although the children now doubt the identity of the alleged Christ, the question remains open for them who he was and whether he will return.

music

1st act

  • The Vaults of Heaven
  • Overture
  • I Never Get What I Pray For
  • Home by Now
  • It Just Doesn't Get Any Better Than This
  • Whistle down the wind
  • The Vow
  • Cold
  • Unsettled Scores
  • If only
  • Tire Tracks and Broken Hearts
  • Safe haven
  • Long overdue for a miracle
  • When Children Rule the World
  • Annie Christmas *
  • No matter what
  • Finale Act 1: No Matter What / When Children Rule the World

2nd act

  • Introduction Act Two
  • Try Not to Be Afraid
  • A Kiss Is a Terrible Thing to Waste
  • If Only (reprise)
  • Charlie Christmas **
  • Off Ramp Exit to Paradise **
  • Safe Haven (reprise)
  • Wrestle With the Devil
  • The Hunt
  • Unsettled Scores (recapitulation)
  • Finale: Whistle Down the Wind / When Children Rule the World

* later replaced by "The Gang" or "The Tribe" (text: Don Black )
** later dropped

Others

During the opening ceremony of the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano , a Japanese version of the song When Children Rule the World was performed with a 150-member children's choir.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ 2019: Whistle down the Wind - LLG Musical Company. Accessed April 8, 2019 (German).