SINGING WITH FRIENDS

Singing with Friends a concert staged by Rainhill Musical Theatre Company at Rainhill Village Hall, Danes Court, Rainhill on Friday 20th January 2023.

Rainhill Musical Theatre Company really do know how to stage a concert!  The last concert they staged in January 2019 … was “VOICE OF THE PEOPLE” which won them a Noda Award for Best Concert… “Singing with Friends” was up there with the best as well… wonderful production… had everything!

SO, WHAT WAS THE VISION AND THE THOUGHT BEHIND THIS CONCERT! If I may paraphrase from Paul Robinson’s (Director) programme notes… because it really does say it all…“A simple title, full of meaning! Tonight, we take you on a journey giving you an insight into why we enjoy this hobby of ours… the friendships we make and what those friendships mean to us all!  This concert will guide you through the rehearsal process from an idea to a performance, using our favourite medium… “song”!

CREATIVE TEAM… to stage any production requires experienced people at the helm and Rainhill MTC had gathered an accomplished team in Paul Robinson (Director), Wayne Oakes (Musical Director) and Bryan Dargie (Choreography/Video Editing and Photography).  It was obvious, from the start, that a great deal of thought had gone into the ‘planning’ of this concert, from the song choices, to the projected images that ran alongside and throughout, shown on an off-stage screen. The use of the projected images not only enhanced the production, but supported the narrated testimonies given by many cast members, about their experiences and memories before they sang…  congrats, to everyone involved, excellent job throughout! 

The Cast …  Pip Bradshaw, Meg Charlton, Marjorie Davies, Liam Fitzgerald, Ruth Gibb, Claire Heaton,
                            Sarah Johnson, Claire Jones, Maureen Kinsey, Barbara Marsh, Charlotte Orme,
                         Sam Troke, Julie Robinson, Bet Davies, Michelle Williams, and Dawn-Louise Wright.

Programme (Performed in two acts) … Act 1
i)  ‘Broadway Musical Medley’ – sung by the Full Company but included a solo from Charlotte Orme of ‘Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious’; which had a very interesting/imaginative choreographed inclusion. Letters from the ‘title’ were displayed on small cards carried
     by each member of the cast and when the cast were ‘stood in right place’, they did in fact spell the title…  ‘Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious’!
ii) ‘Sunflower’ from the musical ‘Calendar Girls’ written by Tim Firth and Gary Barlow, sung by Bet Davies. The musical and this song is about much more than a group of women raising money, it’s about friendship, strong friendship that for many is everlasting, one
     that will endure for life!  Be proud Bet, good job!
iii) ‘Show People’ sung by Barbara Marsh & Ruth Gibb… heartfelt and another fitting number, be proud!
iv) ‘Dream On’… sung by Claire Jones and Company.  A classic from ‘Aerosmith’… opening lyric... “Every time I look in the mirror, all these lines on my face getting clearer, the past is gone”… inspiring!
v)  ‘Macavity’, from the musical ‘Cats’ and written by Andrew Lloyd Webber.  Another terrific song sung by Claire Jones… Claire knocked this one out the park.  Be ever so proud - great job!
vi) ‘Gimme Gimme’ from the musical ‘Thoroughly Modern Millie’ written by Jeannie Teson and Dick Scanlon, sung by Claire Heaton. The song expresses the longing and desire for romance and love and a decision Millie makes regarding an arranged marriage and
      finding true love  … well done Claire, be proud!
vii) ‘Send in the Clowns’ a song from the musical ‘A Little Night Music’… written by Stephen Sondheim and sung by Marjorie Davies and Maureen Kinsey. These two ‘young ladies’ bring with them 169 years of experience and love of music. Their rendition of this
      song ‘brought the house down’… well done ladies!
viii) ‘No-One But You’ (Only the Good Die Young) written by Brian May (Queen), sung superbly well by Sarah Johnson and the Company. This song, supported by some memorable projected images, was a real ‘lump in the throat’ moment, sung in memory of
       several members who had passed… be proud! 
ix) ‘Dear Evan Hansen Medley’ – sung by Full Company. This medley of songs was from the musical and film of same name, the music and lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul. Both musical and film have sole searching story lines… absolutely love the song ‘You
      Will Be Found’ … a truly amazing way to end Act 1.

Act 2
i) ‘Disney Friendship Medley’… Full Company, opened Act 2… this section included, ‘Friend Like Me’, ‘I Wanna be Like You’, ‘That’s What Friends are for’… Disney produce some amazingly inspirational films/songs… perfect for this concert, the company did all
    these songs justice with terrific harmonies throughout!
ii) ‘Hear My Song’ sung by Dawn-Louise Wright, Michelle Williams, Liam Fitzgerald and Claire Heaton, well done folks, great song, great sound and a great rendition of this truly inspirational song!
iii) ‘Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow’ … beautiful heartfelt rendition of this classic written by Gerry Goffin and Carol King, sung ever so well by Pip Bradshaw.  Considered ‘racy’ when first released (the song not ‘Pip’); the first number one from an ‘all black female
     group’ The Shirelles… tremendous lyrics… excellent job Pip!
iv) ‘Run Freedom Run’… from the film ‘Urinetown’ with music by Mark Hollman, lyrics by Holman and Greg Kotis, sung by Sam Troke and the Company … another great song performed really well… be proud!
v) ‘I Know Where I’ve Been’ from the musical Hairspray sung ever so well by Julie Robinson and Company. The song speaks about dreams, struggles, promises; about pride and using that pride to lift yourself up,to believe in yourself and achieve your dreams! 
     Another great song, be proud Julie!
vi) ‘Flight’… music/lyrics by Craig Carnelia, sung ever so well by Dawn-Louise Wright & Michelle Williams. 
vii) ‘Sunday’ is a song taken from the musical ‘Sunday in the Park with George’ composed and written by Stephen Sondheim. Beautiful song, sung exceptionally well, with amazing harmonies from a Full Company.    
viii) ‘Dancing in the Street’ written by Marvin Gaye, William "Mickey" Stevenson and Ivy Jo Hunter and sung superbly well by Sarah Johnson and the Company!  The lyrics say it all… ‘if you’re dancing, your usually feeling happy, especially if dancing with your
       friends… amazing vocals Sarah, great backing from company!
ix) ‘We Belong’ from the musical ‘Priscilla Queen of the Desert’ written by Eric Lowen and Dan Navarro sung by the Full Company.   Lyrics suggest… ‘we belong, we belong, we belong together’… I think this is what this concert was all about… ‘it’s great to belong to
      something’… amazing song, amazing lyrics, sung superbly!
iix) ‘SING’ is a song written by Kevin Olusola, Sam Hollander, Martin Johnson, Mitch Grassi and Scott Hoving for a group called Pentatonix and is their third single from their debut album. The song offers one solution to deal with life's problems: ‘SING’. The       
       track celebrates singing as a way of overcoming hard times and of enjoying good times… I really don’t need me to say anymore!

I always like to ‘stick my neck out’ and select MY favourite or two as in this case… when you think of all the amazing songs that were sung and performed that evening, ‘favourites’ are difficult… but, never one to ‘sit on the fence’ I’m going to select one ‘favourite’ from each Act...  
Act 1 favourite … ‘Send in the Clowns’ Marjorie Davies and Maureen Kinsey epitomised everything that this concert was about, they gave it their all and they brought the house down… amazing ladies, be proud!
Act 2 favourite… ‘SING’ sung by the ‘Full Company’, sung to perfection with some sublime harmonies a real ‘favourite’ song of mine and what a way to end this concert!.

The Band… under the watchful eye of Wayne Oakes included Paul Taft, Kevin Bates and Amy Gray… amazing sound folks… as always be ever so proud!

I’ve said this before and I’ll no doubt say it again… what makes a good concert great?  For me... it’s imagination and detail!  The imagination and detail that went into this production was there for everyone to see and hear… great songs, (some that I’d never heard of before), great music, great performances and the enhancement provided by the projected images!  We also had detailed and informative ‘testimonies’ from cast members.  The movement and choreographed routines were ‘simple yet effective’, the staging ‘simple yet effective’… the ‘journey’ promised was ‘simple but reflective’… but what was plainly evident throughout was the ‘friendship’, ‘camaraderie’ from everyone involved, from those on stage, to those front of house, to those back stage, from those selling programmes to those serving drinks… Rainhill Musical Theatre Company is not just a Musical Theatre Company, it’s a group of ‘mates’, ‘friends’, ‘family’ who come together to do ‘their thing’… PERFORM, SING, ENTERTAIN … SOMETHING THEY DO EVER SO WELL… be proud folks!

Thank you so much for inviting my wife and I we thoroughly enjoyed all we saw and heard! It was also great to see my old friend Keith Marsh back helping to organise the front of house activities again, thanks Keith for looking after us! Already looking forward to seeing you all again for The Adams Family.

Stay Strong/Keep Well
‘Stronger Together’

Jim Briscoe
NODA NW
District 6 Rep

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