Working our way through the last ten decades, we were treated to some of our favourite songs from the shows.
The very first show of this year’s series, we kicked off with ‘Puttin’ on the Ritz’. Like all the pieces this morning, this was performed a capella; but the most uplifting dimension was how smiley and joyful the performers were.
The group has several regional groups spread around the country, and this was a combined gathering of those from Chippenham, Swindon, and the Western Show regions – there is hope that an Edinburgh branch maybe launched shortly. It’s a non-auditioning organisation – you just need a love and passion for singing! While the female voices were certainly the majority, it was good to see a healthy male contingent – which gave some meaningful balance for the ‘parts’.
While the performance didn’t require a huge pushing of musical boundaries, you couldn’t help but be bowled over by the sheer sound of the singers and the volume of the voices. ‘Oklahoma’ followed the first work, and, moving to the 1950’s, we heard another enduring classic, ‘Do Re Mi’. The whole thing was unrestrained fun – warm and family-friendly.
The 1960’s moved us on to the end of the ‘golden age’ for musicals – ‘Sunrise, sunset’, from ‘Fiddler on the Roof’ clearly made some members of the audience reminiscent (almost reaching for the tissues!) This was a moving change of mood, with some well-rehearsed and disciplined harmonies. ‘You gave me a little love’ from Bugsy Malone hauled us into the 70’s – the unmistakeable shift in sound was notable, reflecting the rise of pop music and also film soundtracks.
Paying tribute to Edinburgh, a 1980’s song which became the group’s anthem last year was ‘My heart was broken’ (‘Sunshine on Leith’). A still further change in gear came with the opening song from ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’ – the 1990’s reflecting the Disney renaissance.
Of course, the 2000’s was the age of the Juke Box musicals – from Moulin Rouge, ‘Roxanne’ was a darker but passionate number. This then led us into ‘Raise you Up’ from Kinky Boots (2010’s) – we might remember the plot: about the failing drag-queen desperately trying to rescue that shoe factory!
There was some inspired (but straightforward) choreography throughout, and the sound amply filled the theatre. There were no understated dynamics, and while the pitch occasionally dropped, this was impressive as it was enthusiastic. We were sent out with ‘Get up, stand up’ … to enjoy the rest of the day.
The show finished at 12.00pm.
100 Years of Musicals, Monday 18th August 2025, theSpace (Triplex)
Continues daily until Saturday 23rd August | 11.15am – 12.00pm & .4.55pm – 5.40pm
£14.00 | £10.00 (concessions)