KATS present WHISTLE DOWN THE WIND

by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Jim Steinman

Kingsbridge Amateur Theatrical Society is an award-winning group. This week KATS has been nominated for another award – for Best Drama in the prestigious NODA SW awards for the play version of Blood Brothers, by Willy Russell, staged last September.

KATS next show is fast approaching - Andrew Lloyd Webber’s fabulous musical Whistle Down the Wind. Described in The Daily Telegraph as “Lloyd Webber’s best musical since Phantom”, the show is a challenging venture. The talented cast aged between 8 and almost 80 have been rehearsing hard for many months to bring this uplifting musical to the stage.

Director Lynne Deller says “’We are all just so excited it’s finally coming to fruition. Any musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber is not straightforward but our wonderful cast have really risen to the challenge and we have a fantastic show. Of course, having the talented Kathy Kenny, our musical director on board is a real asset.  She has been making sure our cast hit those incredibly high notes!”

Kathy Kenny is new to KATS but well known for her fabulous work with Kingsbridge Community College, the West Alvington Singers and The Military Wives choir in Plymouth, with whom she performed at the Carnegie Hall. This show is a family affair too since Kathy’s husband Wayne is playing one of the lead characters.

Based on the book and the film of the same name starring Hayley Mills and Alan Bates, the musical version is set in America’s deep South in 1959. It’s an endearing tale focussing on a group of children who discover a delirious, injured stranger hiding in their barn. When they apprehensively ask who he is, he replies “Jesus Christ!” and they vow to protect him. Meanwhile the townspeople are determined to track down an escaped, convicted murderer known to be hiding in their midst.

Playing Swallow, the girl who discovers the mysterious man, is 16-year-old Talia Robens. Talia is perfectly cast as the grieving teenager who is looking for something, or someone, to believe in. Talia is excited to have recently been offered a place at ArtsEd in London, a renowned global leader in the provision of performing arts training, with many of today’s West End leading performers having trained there. Coincidentally Andrew Lloyd Webber is its President!

Starring alongside Talia in Whistle Down the Wind is Anthony Chamberlain. Anthony adds to his list of credits for KATS in recent years, having played Tevye the milkman in Fiddler on the Roof, Nathan Detroit in Guys and Dolls and most recently Mickey Johnston in the play version of Blood Brothers, Anthony is relishing another, varied and challenging role as The Man.

Whistle is staged at Malborough Village Hall from 25 to 28 March. The hall has plenty of parking, raked seating and a licensed bar. Tickets are priced from £8 to £14 and are on sale at Kingsbridge Information Centre and online via Ticketsource at www.kats-kingsbridge.co.uk/tickets