As our Chairman, David Furnival, has said, musical theatre is much underrated (isn’t opera musical theatre?) so MiQP was delighted to present Minims Musical Theatre Choir at St.Mary’s, Bishops Frome, last night. Under the directorship of Stephanie Smith, Minims is a newly formed choir in Hereford (with a Worcester branch) and this was their first concert. It was a happy and joyous occasion, and judging by the cheers, much enjoyed by the audience, who had braved cold and wintry conditions to attend.
Although an original Saxon church which probably stood on the site no longer exists, the current Norman and Victorian neo-Norman building provided a picturesque setting for the varied programme of music. Performers in black outfits with dashes of red (there were a few red Christmassy hats in evidence) were set off by the blood red poppy decorations remaining after Remembrance Sunday. The very unusual lead-lined Norman font, one of only twenty or so in the country which still survives, had a beautiful display.
The performers positioned themselves under the C12th Norman chancel arch, decorated with hop bines (what could be more suitable for one of the Hop group of churches?). We were entertained to some popular pieces from shows such as West Side Story and Mamma Mia, favourite oldies like Let it Snow and Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas and some more modern items like Church Mouse’s favourite, Circle of Life from the Lion King. The choir swayed and rocked in time to the music, making us all want to join in. There were also some talented solo performers, but the one who stole everybody’s hearts was the bi-lingual and cherubic seven year old Anton Ege, accompanied by his mother Iris on guitar. He sang Stille Nacht from memory with alternating verses in German and English, bringing to mind the (possibly apocryphal) story of the football match played between German and English soldiers on the Western Front during the Christmas Truce of 1914. Anton was extraordinary, displaying the composure one might expect from a seasoned performer rather than the tiny figure standing before us, and, as might be expected, received resounding applause.
Everyone looked as if they were loving performing – is there anything more contagious than spontaneous smiling and moving?
Great thanks must go to the Rev. Steven Baggs, Bishops Frome Parish Council which provided such a warm welcome for us by providing refreshments (some of which were positioned on the late C16th or early C17th parish chest), with particular thanks to John and James for opening up, salting the path to the loo and turning the heating on. As always, HHCT provided a bar and the radiator near where the red wine was positioned did a good job in raising the temperature of the wine which had been icy!
Thanks, of course, to Stephanie and the choir and soloists, including of course, their accompanist Marion. We look forward to future appearances.
Church Mouse
