LET’S SING THE MUSIC AND DANCE Director: Scott Lees Choreography: Carolynne Jones Crowder Music supplied by backing tracks Vocal Coach: Dawn Leigh Ashton – Under – Lyne Operatic Society For 123 years this society has been serving the community. Only wars and the Covid pandemic has stopped them performing. The foyer was jam packed with programmes and photographs of past productions. This created great interest, with audience members seen reminiscing about those shows from the group’s history. The evening’s song set was not to be full of songs from memory lane, but, as always with Ashton AOS, the latest West End shows were also included. The lights went down, Chairman, Scott Lees sang “Wilkommen” from ‘Cabaret’ then broke off to welcome the audience. He gave a potted history of the society and as he spoke there were projected societyrelated images. He also gave the audience information about former members who have gone on to have successful professional careers. This set the tone for the evening, the die was cast and it was going to be entertainment all the way to the big finale. Ashton’s shows were always noted for their choreography and the dancers. This production carried on that tradition. The routines were creative and executed by a team of polished dancers. Highlights were “Mambo” (‘West Side Story’), “One” (‘A Chorus Line’), “Le Jazz Hot” (‘Victor/Victoria’) and “Rich Man’s Frug” from ‘Sweet Charity”. Twenty-eight numbers from the best of Broadway and the West End including shows as diverse as “Oklahoma!” and Andrew Lippa’s “Big Fish”. An array of soloists and an enthusiastic ensemble delivered the musical feast. To aid the company Dawn Leigh was on hand for vocal coaching. Dawn displayed how to deliver a song with a flawless
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