It just would not be Christmas, without the
Christmas Proms. As always, Timothy Sexton has worked his conductor's baton very hard to ensure that this year's Proms are everything that the audience asked Santa to bring them. Once again, there was a full house, with people of all ages, because there is nothing more family friendly than these annual concerts, and everybody had a wonderful time.
Because there is a major musical on the Adelaide Festival Theatre stage at the moment, the Proms this year are in Her Majesty's Theatre, and the smaller stage meant the orchestra was scaled down a little. I also noticed that the two clowns, Boppa and Moose, were absent this year. Tim's wife, Suzanne, is to be thanked for thinking of this year's theme, The Great Gatsby, which allowed the Christmas songs and carols to be interspersed with numbers from the 1920s and 30s, and gave some of us in the audience licence to dress up a little to complement the theme on stage. Audience participation goes beyond singing along with a few old favourites as every year people take it upon themselves to join in with their own little touches.
Every year there are two special guests and, this year, they were the great jazz singer, Emma Pask, and musical theatre star, Stephen Mahy. Also on hand were three of the regular singers from State Opera of South Australia, of which Sexton is both CEO and Artistic Director: Kristen Hardy, Rachel McCall, and Adam Goodburn, dubbed The Gatsby Gang for the event.
The music, of course, was provided by Sexton's Adelaide Art Orchestra, which consists of the cream of local musicians with the ability to play any genre asked of them, from the
Philip Glass trilogy to jazz. We have come to expect so much from this very fine orchestra and they deliver every time. Even with the reduced forces,this was no exception, thanks also to Sexton's marvellous arrangements.
The evening began with a lively Overture, a medley of songs from the musical, Bells Are Ringing, followed by Pask with one of her own well-written songs,
Hitch a Ride Home, raising thoughts of those away from their families at Christmas. Next was Mahy with
I've Got a Crush on You, showing his skill in interpreting a much-loved ballad. The Ding Dancers were hot on his heels, kicking it up in the
Charleston.
Such variety in just the first four numbers was a clear indication that the evening was going to offer something for everybody. There were the essential Christmas songs such as
Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer,
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, and
The Christmas Song (chestnuts roasting on an open fire). There were also plenty of familiar carols, including
Silent Night and
Hark the Herald Angels Sing, and the final number was the ever popular
Twelve Days of Christmas, in which the audience joined in on the number five, while the two guests tried to keep track of their numbers.
Everything else was up for grabs with the numbers ranging from
Mack the Knife, through
The Lindy Hop,
Cheek to Cheek, a
Puttin' on the Ritz Christmas medley,
Night and Day, to
Zat You Santa Claus?, an old
Louis Armstrong number.
The director this year was Andy Packer, who created a sparkling evening of entertainment, and Kathryn Sproul weaved her usual magic on the set design, cleverly incorporating a screen on which the lyrics were displayed whenever the audience was invited to sing along.
This is another very successful Proms performance and the audience spilled out into the street after with smiles on very face. It has become an essential Christmas event for so many people, so make sure that you are amongst them.
The following is taken from the press release for the Proms, so please do what you can to help.
"This year Adelaide Festival Centre will support five worthy Adelaide charities and organisations at a time when people need some much needed cheer and good will.
Donations can be made before and after all performances at Her Majesty's Theatre. Non-perishable food items can be dropped off at Her Majesty's Theatre during performance times or placed under the Christmas tree in the Festival Theatre foyer from 15 November."
The five charities supported this year are: Australian Refugee Association, Catherine House Inc., Common Ground, Food Bank, and Youth Opportunities.
