Review: Whistle Down The Wind ***

Transferring one of the 20th-century's most popular children's novels, Whistle Down the Wind, to the screen, was highly successful. But where the film triumphed, the musical adaptation of Mary Hayley Bell's work fails to excite.

Despite the fact it has a stirring Lloyd Webber music, including the hit song, No Matter What, moving the setting from rural England to Louisiana's Bible belt, the introduction of elements of racial prejudice and a dramatic fugitive hunt has taken away the childlike innocence, the ordinary setting and characters that made the tale almost believable

The story revolves around Swallow, a young girl, whose mother has just died. When she discovers a mysterious man in her family's barn and the first words he utters are "Jesus Christ", it's as though her prayers have been answered.

As the fugitive, Jonathan Ansell is outstanding and shows just what a fine operatic voice he has, singing with passion straight from the heart .

However, the show itself is light in dialogue, which makes it hard for the cast to get to grips with their characters and while there are some fine performances from Carly Bawden as Swallow and Carl Stallwood as Amos, the sheer number of scene changes and blackouts makes for a sadly laboured production.

To Apr 17.