Saturday 18 September 2010
The beautiful venue of All Saints Church, Orpington saw our inaugural outing for the VIVA and Friends show. Not only was it a chance for us to perform most of our repertoire, but we also had the opportunity to hear the talents of the many “friends” that are associated with our VIVA members.
MC Brian Schofield got us started, then VIVA performed a set comprising Come Fly With Me, You’re So Vain, You Don’t Know Me, Turn The Tables and Don’t Wanna Miss A Thing. We added our hippy gear to perform a theatrical Rhythm Of Life. All the songs were received well but the last number caused a great deal of praise and merriment.
The next performer was the amazingly talented James Pirot, who gave us a few of his own compositions, singing and playing keyboard. We and the audience were hugely impressed. The first half concluded with the brilliant Unbroken, whose mixture of ballads and rock songs seemed synonymous with quality and diversity.
The second half opened with The Late Show, a fabulous quartet of four of our VIVA members. Their lovely harmonies had the audience spellbound. James Pirot then returned for another short but inspiring set. Finally VIVA returned to the stage, concluding the show with performances of Lazy Day, Shangri-la, Lean On Me, Goodnight Sweetheart and Somebody To Love.
It was a fabulous night. The audience appeared to love every minute of it. We felt it was a striking showcase of our skills and were delighted with all the positive feedback.