SHORT TAKES : Angels Keep ‘Bernadette’ Alive

LONDON — A musical about Bernadette of Lourdes, a French girl who saw a vision of the Virgin Mary, opens in London’s West End today, financed in part by investments from the public.

Producer William Fonfe says he appealed to the public after rich investors refused to back “Bernadette” when they realized it was written and produced by unknowns.

He said the company, Bernadette PLC, had received about $1 million from the public and had raised the rest for the $2-million production himself by re-mortgaging his home, among other measures.