The play, which will tour Island schools in February and March before going to Guernsey, Sark and Corfu, has been adapted by Arts Centre director Daniel Austin from the Gerald Durrell novel. It is the first time that the book, originally published in 1956, has been transformed into a piece of theatre and it is the third theatre-in-education piece to be produced by the Arts Centre following Once Upon An Island… in 2004 and Secret Weapons in 2005. Four local children and four professional actors have been cast. The children will be split into two teams with William Howell-Jackson (14) and Martha MacDonald (10) playing the young Gerry, while Hermione Duncan (10) and Joss MacDonald (11) play Roger the dog. The adult professional actors are Janette Froud as Mrs Durrell, Rachel Hyde-Harvey as Margo (Gerry’s older sister), Jonny Liron as Larry (Gerry’s eldest brother) and Pietro Herrera as Leslie (Gerry’s older brother).
