=Concert
Report=
By
UKMark, On Location in Cardiff, Wales
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Stars
of the Evening
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to Enlarge) |
Is it really a year since Dutch Mark and I met Charlotte at
the recording of Gloria Hunniford’s Open House chat
show? Just a few days earlier we had been in Cardiff for the Showtime at the Stadium
concert. Well, you’d be hard pushed to find a greater contrast to the ‘Showtime’ concert than the ‘Music Of The Night’ performance.
Compare a full blown stadium concert in front of 35,000 people (many screaming!) to that of an intimate evening of song accompanied by just two pianos in a Cathedral and an audience of around 500. Both amazing experiences in their own very different ways. Only their theme of ‘the musicals’ was shared.
‘Music Of The Night’ was the closing concert of the inaugural International Festival of Musical Theatre in Cardiff. The festival ran for 3 weeks at various venues across the city. Last night, it was the turn of Llandaff Cathedral.
‘Intimate’ really does describe the evening. When I stepped into the Cathedral, out of the pounding rain, I felt as though I had walked in on a local community event. In reality, this probably wasn’t too far from the truth.
There were just 22 rows of chairs or should I say ‘pews’, each about 20 across, split down the middle by the aisle. To each side was further ‘restricted view’ seating. My seat was in the main nave section about half way back. Seven rows in front of me sat Maria, Nan and Bampy and other members of the Church family. Louise Ryan, Charlotte’s singing teacher was also with them. In the closing speech, the audience was told that Sir Howard Stringer, the CEO of Sony Corporation, was in attendance. Sony was a major sponsor of the Music Festival.
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Programme
Cover
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Programme
Centre
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The performance area was lit by candlelight, assisted by subdued backlighting. 5 chairs were set out for the singers. Either side of the chairs were the two grand pianos. The singers were to remain seated until in was their turn to perform, at which point they would step forward to the microphone. Loudspeakers throughout the nave complemented the natural acoustics of the Cathedral.
The traditional church layout of the seating meant that most people could only see the performers from their shoulders upwards. I was therefore grateful to see a photograph of the cast in today’s
South Wales Echo. This also saves me from having to describe their outfits, as I am no fashion expert! This is probably an opportune moment to let you know that I didn’t take any photographs of my own. I had asked before the concert started but I really wasn’t surprised when the answer came back as a negative. It would have been totally inappropriate for such a performance and at such a venue for the audience to be snapping away with their cameras.
And so onto the performance. At 7:30pm the main lighting dimmed and the 5 performers appeared from an entrance on the opposite side of the nave to myself. They walked towards me before turning down the central aisle towards the ‘stage’.
As I’ve already indicated, I won’t attempt to describe Charlotte’s dress in detail. Please see the newspaper photograph. It is not clear from the photograph but Charlotte’s hair was neatly tied back in a ‘bob’. What I will add is that Charlotte looked radiant and elegant and just how I had remembered her, but with the
benefit of another year.
Stuart Pedlar and Paul Maguire, the pianists, opened with an instrumental, the singers remaining seated. Then, each performer took to the microphone in turn. Rather than repeat it here, take a look at the official programme and the revised supplement for the running order.
Charlotte’s performances were magical, made all the more special by the surroundings. Seeing (hearing?) Charlotte sing live heightens the experience so much more than on TV or CD. I can’t really describe it but those of you lucky enough to have been to one of Charlotte’s concerts will know what I mean. My personal favourite of Charlotte’s pieces was ‘The Unexpected Song’ - her performance was so full of emotion.
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Programme
Supplement: Running Order
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to Enlarge) |
Programme
Supplement: Festival Staff
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This is not to detract from the other performers. For example, Steve Balsamo’s rendition of the penultimate number ‘Gethsemane’ was astounding. The audience reciprocated with a standing ovation.
The 5 performers sang the final number together before returning to their seats.
One of the organisers gave a brief talk on the success of the evening and the festival in general.
And then, all too soon, Charlotte and the others left the nave to a rousing applause. As we made our way outside, to everyone’s relief it had stopped raining – perfect.
I feel very privileged to have been a member of the audience on such a unique occasion.
A big thank you to Charlotte and the other performers for such a memorable
evening.
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