Wicked Local: ‘Birdy’ takes flight at Commonwealth Shakespeare Company in Wellesley

The distinct tone of the movie is probably one reason why Naomi Wallace avoided watching it. In 1997, she was commissioned by a British theater company to write a stage adaptation of the story, which was a novel by William Wharton before it became a film. Now Commonwealth Shakespeare Company stages her adaptation of “Birdy” Feb. 27 to March 17 at Babson College in Wellesley.