“We are what we are,” carolled the Gay Men’s Chorus and after ten years, Brighton knows too and feels grateful.
The famous male voice choir celebrated their tenth anniversary with a charity concert at the Theatre Royal Brighton where sparkling enthusiasm matched sequined waistcoats.
Nearly 100 tenors, basses and baritones belted out their own arrangements of ballads, rock songs, solo numbers and duets with their own brand of panache.
Hands, feet and knees waved and tapped, underlining a harmony here, a sequence there and clever new words everywhere.
Camp innuendo popped and crackled in comic interludes but never overshadowed the artistry of the assembled singers, arrangers, musicians or conductor Marc Yarrow.
His direction distinguished a range of tempi and dynamics to make a varied and effective programme: Moon River, so often a dirge, was briskly romantic but the showstopper was a breathtakingly complicated arrangement of Rhythm Of Life which had most rows in the audience waving right along with it.
What probably started as a pub joke has grown into a musical institution which never quite takes itself seriously. It raises a fortune for charity and puts a rhythm in your step.
Five stars
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article