The Really Truly Joyful Ennis Gospel Choir goes to the movies

I have just returned home after attending one of the best shows that I have seen in years. The date was the 16th of October; the venue was Glòr theatre in Ennis, Co. Clare and the show was called "Gospel at the movies" and it was preformed by "The Really Truly Joyful Ennis Gospel Choir".

I'm going to be completely honest and say that I was a little bit dubious about attending this show as it is no secret to anyone that knows me that I am not a lover of musicals and to be caught in the vicinity of a sing-sing of any sort amounts to nothing more my idea of a hell that is impossible to escape from. To my shame I expected this performance to be somewhere between the two.

The production opened with a cinema type screen at the back of the stage that showed clips of all of the members of this gospel group at rehearsals. My first thought was that it all looked a little bit cheesy and I clicked my tongue and started to tap my foot with impatience at the thought of having to sit through this show for another two hours. The clip drew to a close with an argument between three girls over which song that they should open the show with. "Respect" by Aretha Franklyn or "Freedom" By George Michael or "Your love keeps lifting me higher" by Jackie Wilson.

While the acting talents of the girls in involved in the video clip were exceptionally good, the whole thing seemed a little bit pointless as the show then opened with "Respect" with no indication that the argument had ever been settled. Suddenly about two minutes into the song we, the audience, heard a voice coming from behind us and it was one of the girls from the clip singing "Freedom" and one minute after that the third girl walked on to the stage singing "Your love keeps lifting me higher". The three songs merged seamlessly into each other with about thirty people all singing different lyrics and each song not only didn't clash but actually complimented the other song.

It was FANTASTIC - and so unexpected. Suddenly the video clip didn't seem one bit cheesy or contrived anymore but ingenious and inspired and a terrific opening to the show.

The mood was set and the rest of the first act passed by in a haze of breathtakingly beautiful singing voices and tons of energy and movement. Every fibre in my being was screaming at me to run up on the stage and start dancing and singing along with the choir and it was all I could do to remain in my seat and contain all of my energy in my tapping toe and clapping hands. A video clip of a scene or trailer from a movie preceded most songs and it really set the tone and mood for every act. I particularly liked the scene of Tina turner as a young child being thrown out of her choir for not singing "This little light of mine" in a reverent enough manner and the caption at the end was "This one is for anyone who has every been told that they shouldn't sing...." and the choir launched in the best version of "This little light of mine" that I have ever heard.

Another clip that I liked was of Cuba Gooding Junior in "The Fighting Temptations" trying to set up a choir and having to work his way through woeful audition after woeful audition. Originally he wanted a choir of God fearing people only but in the end was so desperate for anyone who could sing that he was willing to accept anyone at all including atheists. The point of this clip was to show that that "The Really Truly Joyful Ennis Gospel Choir" welcomes any person into their choir who just wants to sing and preform. Auditions are not necessary.

What a fantastic community group I thought. On closer inspection of the choir, I discovered that it is completely multicultural with people from all nationalities and races in it. There were children involved and I even spotted that there were members of the Choir who had learning difficulties or physical impairments.

At the risk of sounding politically incorrect (and please forgive me if I do as I honestly don't mean to), I believe that there is a tendency by people to attend a show like this and almost give a sympathy applause to everyone at the end of it. There is often a feeling that you couldn't possibly give an honest opinion as to whether you enjoyed it or not as there are children involved and a person with down syndrome. You would have to clap everyone on the back and say well done regardless of what you thought or risk being ostracised from society for daring to offer a critical opinion.

This is not the case with this choir group. Other than make the point that anyone at all is free to join, there was no reference made to individual members of the group at any time. This choir receives every ounce of praise and acclamation based on their talent and aptitude alone.

I was awestruck by the talent shown by the children's choir group who ranged in age from three to twelve. They sang 'Ain't no mountain high enough' and at the risk of sounding corny had voices like angels but moved with all the soul and rhythm of their adult counterparts. Each and every child's eyes were shining with the absolute love for what they were doing and it was all I could do not to nudge my husband and insist that we move to Ennis at once to enrol our four year old and three year old in this choir immediately. What a fantastic way of instilling confidence and a love for the arts in your child at such an early age.

There was also a cameo appearance from four teenage girls from the local dance school "Sparks" and I have heard that members of this group have received awards and acclaim from hip-hop dancing competitions from all around the world and it is easy to see why. Lead by their dance instructor Lourdes O'Donaghue, they are a shining example of what young people can achieve with hard work and determination. Their dancing was flawless and added to the frenzy and excitement and mood of the whole show.

The entire production was not without flaw however and this would not be an honest review if I was to pretend otherwise. On a number of occasions the microphones were a little bit too slow to be turned on and there seemed to be a real issue with the lighting. Two songs were sung in total darkness as though the lighting technician had no idea that anyone was on stage and the conductor even had to shout for lights a couple of times from the stage. While these errors would not be deal breakers by any standards as to how fabulous this show was it is a real shame to mar such a terrific show by such carelessness. There were either not enough technical rehearsals done or the technicians in charge of sound and lights had not made themselves familiar enough with the show.

The band that played with the choir are members of LCGC (London Community Gospel Choir) and were made up of two keyboard players and a drummer. The drummer was the most disciplined drummer that I have ever heard in my life and I cannot give higher praise than that. It is my understanding that the two keyboard players had never even seen the show until their rehearsal with the choir earlier that day yet played impeccably. My husband, who is a keyboard player himself, was in awe of how talented they were.

At the end of the show the entire audience were on their feet dancing and singing with the choir and people felt so involved that when the choir started to bow so did the people sitting next to us. It was as though we had all forgotten that our role was only that of the observer as we all felt that we had become part of the choir ourselves.

I want to conclude this piece with some special words for the director of the choir Fiona Walsh. I knew Fiona about twenty years ago when I was in school and she is one of two people who introduced me to the world of the arts. She and Lourdes O'Donaghue (of Sparks dance school above) set up a drama group in secondary school called 'Exit' and both girls took me under their wing and directed and coached me in plays until we eventually went on to win an award in the Corofin drama festival in 1989. The drama group was disbanded by our school principle after she came to see the play that won an award and deemed it as "Vile and crude". The reason for this was because we used the word "Effing" once and one actor pretended to have a wee in a bush as part of the play. There was even talk of suspending us at one stage just for being a part of it. These really were more innocent times.

When I knew Fiona she was always involved in anything in the locality that was deemed artistic in anyway. She is talented and organised but never, ever seemed to chase after the applause herself. She always seemed more content to be in the background and so I was not one bit surprised to discover that she is the brains behind "The Really Truly Joyful Ennis Gospel Choir". To organise such a show requires, dedication, skill and enormous talent. This is a community group that every single person in Ennis should be proud to say that they are a part of whether they sung on stage or simply supported the choir by coming to see them.

I am so disappointed to learn that this was the choirs last big performance until 2012 but I will definitely be back to see them now that I have been converted to this genre of music. In the meantime, what the hell - I may even go and see a musical!