CHARLTON FINE ARTS SERIES
On Sunday 5th May, an audience of about 60 was treated to a performance that would have earned accolades in the West End or Broadway.
The superb duo performed music of Kurt Weill and his contemporaries (1920s -1950s) with enormous skill and panache. Crayford’s technical virtuosity and Turner’s compelling voice and dramatic skill made this a thrilling show that commanded one’s attention from start to finish.
Cheers rang out after their first number, Cabaret, and often thereafter. Mack the Knife, September and Youkali were perhaps the most familiar to the audience, but less known numbers - for example, Tell me the Truth about Love (Auden/Britten) and Hotel (Apollinaire/Poulenc) were greeted enthusiastically. Crayford’s spectacular solo items, The Man I Love, I Got Rhythm and Tango Ballade, gave us the chance to enjoy the piano at its best, with lid raised, and to appreciate her astonishing skill as a performer. It was hard to believe that the duo had rehearsed for the first time only the day before.
The audience were welcomed with a drink to take to their tables (Charlton Church was temporarily transformed into a Continental cafe or nightclub, with red and white check table cloths, fresh flowers on the tables and atmospheric lighting). The era was set by a few well-chosen props: a Tiffany lamp and a fern on an elegant stand. Into this convivial atmosphere, the two glamorous performers, suitably attired for the 1920s, sequins and feathers included, brought an air of sophistication that transported us to a different time and place. Refreshments followed the performance and people stayed for at least another hour to enjoy each other’s company.
Enormous thanks to Penelope and Helen for coming to perform in the Charlton Fine Arts Series, to Penelope’s husband James, to Chris and Maggie Tyler and to Shane and Vicki, for their stalwart support. Thanks also to Jonathan Eddolls from St Mary’s Church for taking photographs and to Simon Partridge of Dover Community Radio for attending and interviewing Penelope.
THE CHARLTON FINE ARTS SERIES WILL BE BACK IN THE AUTUMN with more wonderful concerts. Superb tenor GREG TASSELL and operatic bass ALAN EWING will feature in our next series. WATCH THIS SPACE!
You can now book your tickets for Charlton Church concerts via this link! https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/st-peter-and-st-pauls-charlton-church-dover