Holiday theatre treat

Press, 25 August 1980, Page 4

Holiday theatre treat

By

HOWARD McNAUGHTON

“Listen to the Wind,” by Angela Ainley Jeans. Directed by Mae Arnold for the Canterbury Child- > ren’s Theatre; Repertory ■ Theatre, August 23 to Sepi tember 6. Running time: 2 hr 30min. A group of children who know magic songs being whisked around the globe by, an assortment of Wind people and Sea people, ris-t king - capture by the Black, Thunder Cloud: this musical, play seems to have all the, right ingredients for school! holiday entertainment, and it is not surprising that its previous productions makeit one of the most popular! plays in the history of the' Canterbury Children’s Theatre. I The numerous sets combine realistic period locations with which the young imagination may easily identify and fantastic situations such as the Wind Kingdom

which extend the involvement into the supernatural domain. Just when the action reaches the most atmospheric setting, the Black Thunder Cloud’s Cavern, it all returns to the familiar security of the children’s grandmother’s parlour. The music, similarly, consists of a lot of easy, catchy songs such as “Timothy’s under the Table,”, "When I Grow Up,” and the Gale Bird Song, supported by well judged action routines. But Garry Thin’s 18-piece orchestra is also called.on to provide ’ a considerable amount of the mood of various scenes. Of the adult performances, Arthur Chapman’s Gale Bird is, as usual, the, most popular, although some .of his second-act episodes' seemed a little long; after his circuit of the auditorium on a scooter, however, he could scarcely be dislodged as an audience hero. A# Black, Thunder

Cloud, Judd Millner makes a strong, spirited contribution which greatly enlivens the last act; considering that the show as a whole is rather long, his style might serve as an example to other supernatural characters. In the domestic context, Marie Aldous (the governess), Margaret Chapman (the grandmother), and Winton Harker (the butler) all give valuable performances, and Bob Britten and .Dale Musgrove, as gipsies, ' effectively move the action to the more exotic locations. ' The junior leads, the three children who are kidnapped, are especially .important in this show, and two young actors will alternate' each role. On Saturday afternoon, Toni Bu’shby and Eilish Moran gave strong, effectively contrasting performances of the female parts, but it was Bruce Millner’s vivacious and full-bodied presentation of the mischevious boy. which finally emerged as dominant. • H