It tells the story of seven young people in three different families who form an amateur theatrical group, the Blue Door Theatre Company. The children write, produce, direct and act in their own plays, each of them harnessing a particular talent. Nigel designs scenery, for example; Jeremy composes music; while Sandra makes costumes. During the course of the book each of the young people realises a particular ambition. It is "Bulldog", who shines in comic roles, who realises his ambition to create the elusive "swish of the curtain". At the book's climax, the "Blue Doors" enter a drama contest which they have to win in order to be allowed to attend dramatic school to realise their dream of a career in the professional theatre.
The series
Brown wrote four sequels:
Maddy Alone - 1945
Golden Pavements - 1947
Blue Door Venture - 1949
Maddy Again - 1956
Publication
Until recently The Swish of the Curtain was the only one of the "Blue Doors" series to have been republished after the 1970s. However, recently The Swish of the Curtain (2006) and Maddy Alone (2007) were republished by Longwater Books suggesting that affordable reprints of the remaining three titles might be available in the future. As the remaining titles have not been published for many years, original copies of the 1940s editions are now quite valuable. Copies of the books are very rare, and very hard to find.
The Characters
Nigel Halford
Percy Halford ("Bulldog")
Victoria Jane Halford ("Vicky")
Jeremy Darwin
Lynette Darwin ("Lyn")
Sandra Fayne
Madeleine Fayne ("Maddy")
Film, TV or theatrical adaptations
In 1980, the book was adapted for BBC television. Sarah Greene starred in the production as Sandra Fayne.
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