By Tommy
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sQeAw4PZ58
Available until: Tuesday 5th
January 2021
Captions: None at present, but they’re
working on adding them as soon as possible.
Christmas will be different this year.
We all know that, and have done for a while. There have been many enjoyable
Christmas concerts on offer online, but perhaps this one, more than any other,
really feels like Christmas (though, of course, this will vary according to
each individual’s view of Christmas). Although I don’t doubt that social
distancing was practised, it wasn’t something I was aware of. The distances
always seem natural and unforced. There is no slight awkwardness; no care taken
not to get too close. It seems to be set up so that getting close wouldn’t be
easy.
The concert, which is hosted by Susan Makoma, has a very gentle quality. The music is varied, but the songs tend to be quiet. Perhaps partly because the concert takes place in a church, there is a certain feeling of reverence, though, despite the appearance of a Reverend, it is not a particularly religious concert. There are religious songs, but they are treated as beautiful pieces of music.
The concert is not made up entirely of
music. A few actors read poems or tell stories, including the incomparable
Michael Sheen. I have seen him in three vastly different performances since we
entered lockdown and his versatility is truly impressive. The story he tells is
absolutely lovely.
Jim Carter, whom many know from Downton
Abbey but I know from slightly different works, shows us some magic tricks,
which are amusing, lighthearted and one in particular is impressive. Writer and
actor Athena Stevens performs a well-known Christmas story which she’s
rewritten from another, very interesting, point of view. Marc Antolin gives a
beautiful and very sincere reading of ‘Amazing Peace’ by Maya Angelou. And
that’s not all. There is much to enjoy in this concert and it’s very varied in
style.
The same can be said of the music.
Imelda Staunton sings a beautiful and heartfelt rendition of one of my
favourite carols, ‘In the Bleak Midwinter’, and Jordan Douglas dances to ‘Carol
of the Bells’ with conviction and beauty. There is also a very warm performance
of Nat King Cole’s ‘Christmas Song’ by Giles Terera, while Rosalie Craig sings
a song which is new to me by a songwriter with whom I’m gradually gaining
familiarity: Sara Bareilles, who has written many songs, including those the
lyrics and music for the musical Waitress.
There are many other performers I
haven’t mentioned, such as actor Minnie Driver. There are songs I haven’t
mentioned, including ‘This Christmas’. It is impossible to do justice to every
performer in a review which is probably already far too long, but it is an
absolutely beautiful concert by a range of very talented people, performing
songs and readings that really seem to mean something to them.
On the walls of the church are white
pieces of paper. It isn’t clear what they are at first, but they look striking.
It transpires that they are unsold tickets, presumably for the seats the
current situation did not allow them to sell. There is an audience, but my
impression is that it is not very large. The tickets could not be used as
planned, but they were used to create something new and special. Just like
these concerts.
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