Tag Archives: Rachel Wagstaff

Writer: Sebastian Faulkes Director: Alistair Whatley Reviewer: Vicki Goodwin   When discussing the idea of bringing Birdsong to the stage, novelist Sebastian Faulkes described creating his iconic story with “no thought for dramatic or cinematic adaptation.” Indeed, the very idea of tackling such a huge novel would seem a daunting task to many. As countless centenary commemorations take place across ...

Book: Sebastian Faulks Stage adaptation: Rachel Wagstaff Director: Alastair Whatley Reviewer: Ann Bawtree Rachel Wagstaff’s timely stage adaptation of Sebastian Faulks’ novelBirdsong must,as a reflection of events during World War I,rank with such memorable productions as Journey’s Endand Oh, What a Lovely Waras we rightly remember the horrors of 1914 -1918. The action is based on the experiences of the ...

Writer: Rachel Wagstaff Novel: Sebastian Faulks. Director: Alastair Whatley Reviewer: Charlotte Broadbent Rachel Wagstaff has undertaken the monumental task of adapting Sebastian Faulks’ classic Birdsong. Faulks himself says that the book was “written with no thought for dramatic or cinematic adaptations.” It is a hefty volume, covering many years and three generations. As one of the best loved books written ...

Writer: Sebastian Faulks Adaptor: Rachel Wagstaff Director: Alastair Whatley Reviewer: Jennie Philpot ‘Birdsong’ is one of those novels one feels they should read as a rite of passage, a story of love, war and the turmoil of both. With such a mighty book to adapt to stage the task was always going to be a daunting one but Rachel Wagstaff ...

Writer: Rachel Wagstaff from the book by Sebastian Faulks Director: Alastair Whatley Reviewer:MaggieConstable [rating:3.5] Following 2010’s West End hit, Rachel Wagstaff’s re-adaptation of Sebastian Faulk’s Birdsong (ranked 13th in the 2003 BBC survey The Big Read) marks the very first touring production of the play to over 22 venues across the UK. So here it is at Milton Keynes this ...

Writer: Sebastian Faulks Adaptor: Rachel Wagstaff Director: Alistair Whatley Reviewer: Luke Walker [rating: 4] With the centenary of the outbreak of the ‘Great War’ approaching, Sebastian Faulks’s highly acclaimed 1993 novel, Birdsong, about the horrors of trench warfare may well have resurgence in the bookshops throughout the country. It is at least a decade since I read and it remains ...

Writer: Rachel Wagstaff, form the book by Sebastian Faulks Director: Alastair Whatley Reviewer: Nathanael Kent [rating:3]   The novel Birdsong spans three generations and over seventy years. This is all very well in that medium, but on stage significant changes in location and age can often feel dramatically awkward. It is no wonder that Sebastian Faulks compared the adaptation process ...

Book by: Sebastian Faulks Adapted by: Rachel Wagstaff Director: Alastair Whatley Music: Tim van Eyken Reviewer: Michael Gray [Rating:4.5] Sebastian Faulks’ classic novel, with its psychological insights and its graphic descriptions of trench and tunnel, was never going to be easy to adapt. Perhaps that’s why this first ever touring production is Rachel Wagstaffe’s second attempt; she’s abandoned the time ...