WIGHT Proms has reached its halfway mark and has featured something for everyone — already!
Julian Clary is on tonight for A Wight Laugh, before Wight at the Musicals tomorrow with Jonathan Ansell and Jai McDowell, and the Last Wight of the Proms with G4 on Sunday (already sold out).
Here's what's happened so far:
Tuesday — Horrible Histories as watched by Jon Moreno
The team behind the highly successful children's TV franchise Horrible Histories provided a real winner to open this year's Wight Proms festival — Terrible Tudors — at Northwood House, Cowes.
Who would have thought gruesome, unjust deaths, punishments and torture meted out during the reigns of Henry VIII and Queen Elizabeth I would create such hilarity — but it did.
For anyone who has watched Horrible Histories with their kids, they will know they have carved a niche in the way they have cleverly focused on thousands of years of history, by keeping all the nasty bits in.
This has made learning about the past the most fun it can be for an impressionable youngster.
The show kicked off with a pre-Tudor Richard III vignette, which reignited the theory the Plantagenet monarch may have been responsible for the cold-blooded murders of his young nephews Edward V and Richard, Duke of York — the only ones who stood in his way to him claiming the throne.
It provided the perfect gateway into the truly terrible Tudor period and the infamous reign of Henry VIII — defined by the demise of his six wives — kept upbeat through the mediums of light-hearted panto antics, puppetry, silly sound effects and humourous song and dance routines, including rap.
To get the large family audience engaged, there were some silly singalongs.
They ranged from a useful one to help kids (and occasional quizzers like me) remember the fate of Henry's wives, down to one that poked fun at Henry's famously portly appearance.
Queen Elizabeth I was quite a tyrant, say Horrible Histories, who kept the likes of William Shakespeare (she was a critic of his work) and Sir Francis Drake, nervously on their toes.
Overall, putting aside some of the graphic detail of Mary Queen of Scot's beheading and the non-PC Henry number, it was a jolly good wheeze.
- Read more: Julian Clary interviewed by the County Press
Wednesday — Isle of Pride as watched by Abbie Revert
The second night of The Proms was Isle of Pride which went on despite the adverse weather conditions.
The night started with readings from Out on an Island — a book filled with the stories of many of the LGBTQ+ people who have lived on our Island.
This was followed by an outstanding one woman performance about Joe Carstairs, a famous lesbian boat racer.
The rest of the evening was hosted by the Island’s own Quivers, who also performed a few show stopping numbers, and featured a whole host of drag queens from season three of Ru Paul's Drag Race.
Chorizo May, Kitty Scott Claus and Ella Vaday each performed a whole wealth of numbers that had audiences on their feet and having a wonderful time!
It is so wonderful to see Wight Proms celebrating the LGBTQ+ community with nights like these. Thank you to The Proms and the performers for an incredible night!
Thursday — Isle of Opera as watched by Kate Young
Operas tell of a passionate cycle of love and loss and the performances at Wight Proms’ Isle of Opera were full of feeling.
The evening was due to be compered by Scala Radio presenter Penny Smith, but she was unable to attend, so well-known Islander Tom Stroud stepped in.
The ensemble featured award-winning Scottish soprano Lucy Anderson; mezzo-soprano Maggie Cooper, tenor Jack Dolan and Irish baritone, Rory Musgrave, who has appeared internationally. They were accompanied by pianist James Longford and cellist Nina Plapp.
They took the audience on a journey from Bizet’s Carmen to Mozart’s Cosi Fan Tutte, plus Handel’s Rodalinda and Figaro’s aria from Rossini’s Barber of Seville.
There were pieces from Massenet and Saint-Saens, as well as Brindisi from Verdi’s La Traviata; the Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves from Verdi’s Nabucco, and the finale from Tchaikovsky’s Eugenie Onegin.
I loved the way Lucy sang a piece from Strauss’ Die Fledermaus in English with a comical twist on the lyrics, while the joy with which all the singers performed was a pleasure to watch.
They rounded off the evening in style with Nessun Dorma from Puccini’s Turandot.
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