FIRST a memoir, then an award-winning film, the latest reimagining of The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind is a moving, rip-roarer of a musical.
A ‘school drop-out with a stroke of genius’, William Kamkwamba’s true story details the 2001 Malawian famine and his engineering of an electricity-producing windmill from scrap.
While Warwickshire may be wet and wild, the theatre is bathed in golden sunlight, the cast clothed in vibrant wax print fabrics, vest tops and shorts. This production, directed by Lynette Linton, adapted by Richy Hughes (book and lyrics) and Tim Sutton (music and lyrics), is a feast for the senses.
The beautiful, haunting sounds of Malawi, from traditional to reggae, uplifted and moved in equal measure. Every square inch of stage space was put to good use with dancing taking place up to the very edges, a bone-dry field revealed beneath trapdoors and the on-stage construction of a 7m high wind turbine.
Credit to lighting and video designers Oliver Fenwick and Gino Ricardo Green whose sun-drenched skies and projections of rain deluges, engineering sketches and archive TED Talk footage added another dimension.
The troubled father-son relationship is authentically played by Alistair Nwachukwu (William) and Sifiso Mazibuko (Trywell), and powerfully portrayed was Shaka Kalokoh’s hyena, the harbinger of death, who although uttering not a word, had incredible stage presence.
With a running time of over 2.5 hours, even the youngest audience members were enthralled to the end thanks to a medley of rousing music, catchy songs and high-energy dances – and puppet mastery on another level in the form of William’s dog, designed by Nick Barnes and brought to life by Yana Penrose.
This is sure to enchant those who have read the book or seen the film, but equally so those coming fresh to this heart-lifting tale.
The production runs in Stratford until March 28, before moving to London’s West End from April 25 to July 18.
Vicki Gumbley
