Theatre Under The Stars presents Andrew Lloyd Webberยs musical Whistle Down the Wind. The story follows some children who find a mysterious wanderer holed up in a barn and mistake him for Jesus. Of course, all hell breaks loose. Is he really the Messiah? Or is he an escaped convict? Will the childrenยs innocence and faith prove stronger than the townspeopleยs suspicion and hate? Ah, youยll have to see the show to find out. Set to a pop/rock sound track, the show is set in small-town, 1950s Louisiana ย a far cry from the small-town England of the original book and subsequent film, but no big detour by Webber standards (remember Jesus Christ Superstar?). Since its late-ย90s Washington D.C. premiere, the show has survived negative reviews, a canceled Broadway opening and even a bizarre concept album of songs from the show covered by the likes of Tom Jones, Boy George, Meat Loaf and Donny Osmond. Despite those troubles, Whistle keeps, well, whistling along. A few stumbles mean nothing to die-hard -Webber-heads. This is, after all, the man whose epitaph may well read: ยAndrew Lloyd Webber: Too big for Broadway.ย
Sundays, 2 & 7:30 p.m.; Tuesdays-Fridays, 8 p.m.; Saturdays, 2 & 8 p.m. Starts: Sept. 9. Continues through Sept. 23, 2007
This article appears in Sep 6-12, 2007.