Your events at Classical Events
Details
St James' Church
Ferndale
Tunbridge Wells
Kent
TN2 3RL
England
Programme
George Frideric Handel – Messiah, HWV 56
Performers
Merry Opera Company
Programme Note
From the moment you enter the church before the performance begins, you realise this is no ordinary production. There is no special seating for a large choir, no sign of any orchestra seats or music stands, no stage lighting, in fact nothing at all to show that any concert is about to take place. The church is as you would see it on any normal day.
But on your way in to take your seat, you might notice people hovering by the entrance or wandering around the church: a lady cleaning the altar and choir pews, a hoody, hunched with hands in pockets, looking at the East window. These are people from everyday life; people you may know.
But they do not know each other, and they have their own reasons for being there: each is in search of something — consolation, affirmation, forgiveness, direction.… Some of them carry the concept of a Messiah in their hearts, some are not religious at all. As they sing through this traditional and monumental work, they engage with each other and themselves, ultimately experiencing the transformation from need and despair to understanding, hope and community.
