Fri 19 Nov 2010 In: Performance View at Wayback View at NDHA
GALS at the Out and Loud Festival Saturday night's concert by the Gay and Lesbian Singers Auckland (GALS) will be an extra special evening, as it will pay tribute to a member, Sue Guthrie, who died of cancer a year ago. GALS president Kerry Stevens says she was a longtime member and one of the choir's stars. He says the concert From Time to Time is dedicated to her. It features a song called From Time to Time which was commissioned by Guthrie's partner and written by David Hamilton. Stevens says the first half will be music of a reflective nature, while the second half will be all "bells and whistles". "A lot of her friends are coming from New Zealand and Australia," he says. "It will be very emotional. It's been quite difficult rehearsing the song, especially for the women, because one of the women Margaret Robertson, who is our concert master emeritus, used to be a conductor but now conducts occasionally, was a very great friend of Sue's. And she's conducting that particular piece and it's been pretty tough for her, and for the women, well not just the women, quite a lot of us. At the early rehearsals we only got halfway through the song and we had to quickly get on with something else." Stevens says he hopes they get through the song. He says the concert will be very moving and very special. "We're wearing bits of blue in the first half, which are Sue's favourite colours." He says it's a different year for GALS, as each year for many years it's had two concerts a year at Auckland Grammar. He says this year things changed completely because it hosted the Out and Loud Festival at the Town Hall, with 220 singers from Australia, the US and New Zealand. "It was a huge event over Easter. And that was a very special event so we didn't have time for another major concert. So then we had a small concert, a very friendly one. And now this one is very different, it is a dedication concert, and again the venue is different. We've never done a concert before in the Freeman's Bay Community Centre in Hepburn St." The other difference with this performance is that it starts at 7.30pm, rather than the usual earlier time of 5.30pm. There will also be no repeat show. The Women's Bookshop is selling tickets, while there will be a limited number of door sales. Money will be collected for hospice, which is the wish of Gurthie's partner. The proceeds from the concert will go to GALS' trip to the Outgames in Wellington in March, where it will sing with the Homophones in Wellington Town Hall for the opening ceremony. "It will be our first trip to Wellington," Stevens says. "Although we've sung all over the world, we've never been to Wellington." 20 November 7.30pm - From Time To Time GALS November concert: Freeman's Bay Community Centre, 52 Hepburn St Freeman's Bay, on Saturday 20 November 2010 at 7:30pm. Tickets are $20 prepay can be purchased from the Women's Bookshop in Ponsonby Rd or purchased at the door for $25. Cash bar is available. Jacqui Stanford - 19th November 2010