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Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio Devon's musical, The Day Will Come, takes a brave look at one of the most difficult aspects of the county's past.

The musical is based on research by local historians into the role the people of Devon played in the transatlantic slave trade.

The trade involved shipping goods from England to the Guinea Coast of West Africa.

Once there, the traders would transport black captives to the Americas and West Indies, where they were sold into slavery.

Writer Nick Stimson

First broadcast on Thursday 25 October 2007, The Day Will Come is available on the Listen Again service on this website.

The production was put together in just six weeks with a cast of 40 local actors and music performed by 28 young musicians.

The Day Will Come has been written by local playwright, Nick Stimson, an associate director at the Theatre Royal Plymouth. Nick is an established musical theatre writer with works such as NHS the Musical to his name.

The score has been written by Chris Williams, who has collaborated with Nick on a number of projects in the past, including Korczak, Brother Jacques and Monkey. The music is being performed by the South West Camarata.

"Musicals allow us to go to places and see the world in a way that the spoken word can't always do," explained Nick.

"To make a musical which works on radio is a great challenge artistically and a real chance for musical theatre to reach a wider audience."

An audition workshop in Plymouth

The production team cast 19 lead actors and singers with a passion for musical theatre with a further 21 in the chorus. The company is made up of performers from all over Devon.

• Plymouth and Plympton : Anthony Chamberlain, Darren Lake, Marion MacBeth, Abi Alao, Chris Davies, Sarah Jane Brown, Kate O'Brien, Zoe Fell, Vida Tatum,Μύ Mal Davis, Emma Greenacre, Margaret Grimoldby, Pauline Kadoche, Anne Teresa Miller, Mark Sidey, Nii Tackie Yaoboi
• Bishopsteighton: Richard Robbins
• Chillington: Lawrence Murphy
• Exeter: Pete Feehan, Terry Charles
• Exmouth: Alan Wadlan
• Modbury: Heather Winstanley
• Newton Abbott: Sunny Van der Pas, Gordon Frow
• Okehampton: John Palmer
• Paignton: Jonathan Hunt, Ellen Searle, Clare Exeter
• South Brent: Tom Cuthbertson
• Tavistock: Ilona Reese, Tracey Harding, Stephanie Rees
• Torquay: Nick Cosslett, Helen Randall, Adele Knox
• Totnes: Nic Burge, Mike Shail
• Yealmpton: Neil MacLachlan
• Cornwall: Jo Bowis, Sarah Howe

Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio Devon's assistant editor, Sarah Solftley, explained: "We've had quite a tight timetable of a little over a month to pull this off, so there have been plenty of dramas behind the scenes as well!

"One member of the cast had to be taken to hospital during a recording session, and another was hospitilised. Thankfully they are both recovered now, but that did put us a little behind schedule!

"We've been thrilled to work with such a talented group of performers from all over Devon who have given their all for this exciting production which is genuinely local in content."

Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio Devon has been producing local drama for nearly two years now, with plays such as The Witches of Bideford, Anywhere to Anywhere, Hallsands and most recently Gerald, the story of the Royal Albert Memorial Museum's giraffe.