One of our favourite events of 2010 was Sing It Yourself:Pirates of Penzance at the Butter Factory in Yea. People came for long distances to be part of the singing;some even came on the preceding Sunday afternoons to practice the songs and help us work out how we were going to do this thing.
It was a new idea,but not a radical one. Our monthly Vocal Nosh group has been quite successful in getting people to enjoy singing,but it’s hard to grow that group. Even though it’s very easy to participate,and the social side of it is very satisfying,there’s a barrier to entry:until you’ve come along and had a sing,it seems daunting. By contrast,the Sing It Yourself events are pure fun. Dress up,come along,be a bit silly,sing along with everyone else on songs that you’ve probably known forever. Even the biggest music snobs (snob? moi?) have absorbed some of these songs through their very skins,perhaps not even realising it. That unexpected excavation of songs from the unconscious can be pleasurable,too.
My job as MC is nothing more than moving it along. We treat each event as a learning opportunity,a chance for the ‘audience’to get involved in making choices as much as singing. I ask quiz questions,congratulate people on their costume choices,spin a story around the musical,call for votes on whether we sing songs again,throw chocolates as rewards. And,of course,operate the machinery. The words are projected on the wall,larger than life,and we’ve found a wonderful source of the special karaoke discs for popular musicals.
Our next event is 24 June,a Friday night. This time around it’s The Sound of Music. Time to get your lederhosen on! The Butter Factory in Yea is the venue,and a great venue it is. The private home of Helen and Greg Jolly,its lounge room is huge beyond belief (bigger than my local community hall) and yet with a great ambience and acoustics. I don’t think we could ask for a better place,or nicer hosts.
If you’re a fan of musicals,your enjoy laughing,you’re partial to a bit of fancy dress,or maybe you just like a bit of a sing,come and join us at Sing It Yourself. It can’t hurt,and you just might have a crazy good time!