Event: Sing-Along Messiah

Company: Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, www.cpo-live.com

Where: Calgary, Alberta, Canada

When: December 9^th 2007 

4 ½ Stars 

Reviewed by: Breanne Cursley 

I must admit, I was a little skeptical when I first got the tickets for the Sing-Along Messiah.  I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it turns out I had nothing to worry about – it was very good.  Enjoyable, interactive, and beautiful, this concert was a pleasure from start to finish! 

The first thing I noticed when I walked into the Jack Singer Concert Hall (where the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra resides) was that the auditorium was split up into three sections; sopranos, basses and tenors.  Audiences members were to sit in the section which suited their singing voice (there were an awful lot of men in tenors and basses, and majority of the women were in the soprano section).  I thought that this was a great idea, so there wouldn’t be a mix-up of sound.  There were also Calgary Philharmonic Chorus members dispersed within the audience, which made everything sound so much more beautiful. 

The show began when the conductor ‘George Frideric Handel’ (Ivars Taurins) hobbled in on a cane, despite the fact that Handel has been dead for the past 227 years!  He proceeded to explain to the audience that he had made a deal with ‘his creator’ and it included him coming back to earth every Christmas to perform the Sing-Along Messiah.  His opening speech was hilarious, and it left me wondering why Mr. Handel never considered stand-up comedy as his career.           

My biggest surprise was when the actual ‘sing-along’ part of the performance began.  It sounded amazing!  I thought it might sound a little off, but it sounded as though everyone had been practicing together!  I’m sure the mixed-in chorus members contributed to the sound, but the audience members sang brilliantly as well! 

The Sing-Along Messiah was, overall, a very enjoyable event, with humour and wonderful music.  It is something I would certainly go to see again, and would encourage others to attend as well.