Author: Sonja Francis

THE box office for this year’s Thame Arts and Literary Festival, which runs from October 17 – 20, will be open from 9.30am on Tuesday, September 10, at the Thame town hall.

Events and activities available at this year’s festival include a grave yard walk, Talk kids, for younger readers, workshops, an Art Show, talks by authors and a short story competition.

Visit the TAL website for full details of all the festival events: http://www.talfestival.org/

PHOTO: Patrick Collins, poet and playwright, who will be running a workshop, ‘WORD PLAY’ which will focus on the writing of a series of ‘mini-dramas’.

VERY happy that over 7,000 people flocked to Towersey Festival over the August Bank Holiday weekend, the organisers are already planning the festival’s Golden Jubilee next year, 2014. Great weather on Bank Holiday Monday brought large crowds of day-trippers to The Showground, prompting the opening of an overflow car park and, by the afternoon, a seriously depleted main bar as 30 real ales dropped to half-a-dozen.

“We had one of the best Showground days for four or five years,” reported Festival Director Joe Heap. “And we’d made the Showground bigger by thirty per cent – increasing the food court and bar, and introducing a new music stage and local produce fair (in conjunction with the Thame Food Festival).”

Discussing the entertainment on offer, Joe said: “We had more bands than ever this year and more stages than ever too, including the new Bar Stage in the Showground. That was a roaring success and one of the comments I’ve repeatedly heard is that we’ve introduced lots of people to lots of great new music.”

The packed programme, featuring over 200 acts, stormed off the starting blocks on Thursday night (Aug 22) with a ‘stonking’ performance from The Blockheads. Their set included a rocking rendition of ‘Sweet Jean Vincent’, dedicated to Wilko Johnson, who was recently diagnosed with terminal cancer but is nevertheless, determined to do a tour of farewell gigs later in the year and make a new album.

Dedicated to including more local contributions this year, the programme for what was the 49th annual event, included sets from Thame’s First Thursday Music Club favourites, 2am Blue, Emma Davidmann, and contributions from Tom Banks and Paul ‘Shez’ Sherreard. Students of Dance from Lord Williams’s school, also performed on the Monday, as did the Haddenham Hoofers.

The festival was wound up on the Monday night (Aug 26) with two shows from Bellowhead’s Spiers and Boden, and a spectacular lantern procession through the village of Towersey. In between therewere notable appearances from The Unthanks, who played to a packed Big Tent, while the jazz-flavoured Orkestra del Sol had audiences on their feet at Venue 65 (Aug 23), and an enthusiastically welcomed Show Of Hands (Aug 24).

Swiss Cajun punk trio, Mama Rosin (Aug 25), were nearly forced to cancel their headline slot after a personal emergency prevented accordionist Cyril Yeterian from flying to the UK. But the show went ahead thanks to band fan John Spiers (of Spiers and Boden fame), who learned their entire set in just a few short hours, delivering a seamless performance!

Among the acts appearing on the Bar Stage were Oxford’s Original Rabbit Foot Spasm Band (who appeared at Thame’s Music in The Park last year), and The August List.

Next year will see Towersey celebrate half-a-century – making it the longest running festival of its kind in the UK.

“We’ve been talking to lots of people about projects for next year, and there’s already a real buzz,” said Joe. “People are very excited, and we’re confident that our Golden Jubilee will be a sell-out.”

Early Bird Tickets for the 50th anniversary Towersey Festival, which runs from Thursday, August 21 to Monday, August 25, 2014, are on sale now via the festival website: www.towerseyfestival.com

Joe warned: “We have held this year’s Early Bird rate for these early sales, so get in fast!”

PHOTO: The Haddenham Hoofers entertain the crowds at Towersey Festival 2013

THAME Choral Society will be welcoming the highly experienced and respected soprano, Helen Swift, as its new Musical Director from September 2013, when she will begin rehearsing the choir for its Christmas Concert, which this year includes the very popular A Ceremony of Carols for soloists, chorus and harp, by Benjamin Britten.

Helen started her singing career in Liverpool as a member of the National Youth Choir of Great Britain at the age of fourteen and had early success in the BBC Choir Girl of the Year competition. She then went onto win a choral scholarship to Clare College, Cambridge where she studied music, and then opera in London and Dublin. She now studies with Michelle Wegwart, artistic director of Magdala Opera in Nottingham.

In addition to Thame Choral Society, Helen is also the musical director of Towcester Choral Society, Oxford Welsh Male Voice Choir and the Singing for Pleasure Choir in London, and teaches singing at Rugby School. She is in great demand as a vocal coach, arranger and holds workshops both for children and adults. Outside her musical world Helen loves travel and enjoys sport from marathon running to kick‐boxing, salsa dancing and running around after her two young children.

Helen has performed in many of the major concert venues including St Paul’s Cathedral, Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, and Domplatz in Salzburg.  Recent opera roles include Pamina in The Magic Flute with the Magdela Opera Group, Oberto in Alcina with Cambridge Handel Opera Group, and Susannah in Figaro.

Helen has worked with many distinguished artists, including Sir David Willcocks, Stephen Cleobury and John Rutter. She has appeared as a soloist on many CDs including Lesley Garrett’s album Travel into Light, Palestrina’s Missa Assumpta Est Maria, Tippett’s Negro spirituals, and Motets of the Bach Family.  Recently, she has worked on a Max Richter film score and a DVD for comedian Lee Evans.

Thame Choral Society, founded in 1961, is an informal, friendly, non audition choir committed to the enjoyment of music and has performed a wide range of choral works from baroque through the classical and romantic composers to modern pieces by Britten and Poulenc at its two major concerts each year at St Mary’s Parish Church in Thame. Rehearsals for this year’s Christmas concert begin on September 11, with an  open evening of fun songs, rounds etc for everyone, whether or not they can read music or have sung in a choir before, and refreshments will be provided.

This, and subsequent rehearsals, are at the Methodist Church, Haddenham on Wednesday evenings from 7.30 to 9.30, and new and former singers are always made welcome.

More information about the choir can be found on their website www.thamechoralsociety.co.uk and by sending an email to: thamechoralsociety@hotmail.co.uk

THIS last year has seen the artistic standard of Thame Youth Theatre develop to a very high standard and to keep it there, the group has announced that it will be taking part in the National Theatre Connection’s project which could see them, if they are successful, perform at a regional, professional venue and ultimately the National Theatre in London. 

Tom Mackriell, Youth Arts Development Manager for Thame Youth Theatre, said: “This project is a fantastic opportunity for the youth theatre which will give our seniors the chance to experience and perform at a national standard, giving them performance opportunities that they will remember for the rest of their lives.

“We have also been awarded a half bursary to take part in the project which is a great boost to our development as a youth theatre. 

“We feel that it is important to open this opportunity to as many people in our local community as possible, so we will be holding free, open workshops on Monday, September 16, and Friday, September 20m for new members aged 14 – 18 years. These workshops will allow us to open up more spaces for our community which is one of our main goals here at the youth theatre, allowing us to offer the best possible opportunities to the young people of Thame.”

If you are interested in taking part, then you can contact Tom at: admin@thameyouththeatre.co.uk or 07805 88 58 46