1911 Llanelli Railway Strike Gala Concert staged at Theatr Elli, Llanelli, and featuring Côr Meibion Llanelli, Côr Curiad, Cantata, the 2011 Community Musical Theatre Project, Jazz Heritage Wales, Lynwen Haf Roberts, Joseph Church, the SA15 Theatre Company and Monro Walters.
Songs of protest, songs of war, songs of struggle, songs of strife.
Songs of battle, songs of healing, different tunes in the key of life.
As musical programmes go, it was pretty eclectic, but the end result was that it worked.
The logistic challenges alone were a stern test – moving 200 performers on and off the Theatr Elli stage in a musical memorial to the Centenary of the 1911 Llanelli Railway Strike.
Cerith Owens, of Loud Applause Productions, and Carwyn Matera-Rogers, of Theatrau Sir Gar, deserve credit for attempting such an ambitious exercise.
In addition to focussing on the event of 1911, the concert also highlighted other common worldwide themes of protest, strike, struggle and conflict, all held together with seamless narration from Monro Walters.
The musical journey took us from Jericho, through the battled-scarred landscape of Vietnam and the horrors of the Holocaust to civil rights in the southern states of America and the Rebecca Riots here in Wales.
Cantata, under the direction of Catrin Hughes, served up a stirring set which included Bridge Over Troubled Waters, Medli Afficaniaidd (African Medley) and Gwella’r Byd (Heal The World). There was plenty of drama and clever choreography here to show why this choir is winning awards and plaudits throughout Wales.
One of the key performances of the evening came from The 2011 Community Musical Theatre Project, with extracts from a work commissioned to mark the 100th anniversary of the Llanelli Railway Strike.
With music and lyrics by Keira and Luke Spencer, this was an ambitious attempt to tell the story of the events of 1911 and put the railway strike into a historical context.
Rousing and thought-provoking, the musical project fully deserves a wider audience and many will hope they can be persuaded to stage another performance of the work before the curtain comes down on the centenary events.
The ‘And now for something completely different’ slot was taken by Jazz Heritage Wales, who introduced singers Christian Rae and Elissa Evans, who struck up an instant rapport with the Theatr Elli crowd to get them swinging and clapping in the aisles.
The final words in a wonderfully entertaining evening went, appropriately, to Côr Meibion Llanelli, who love playing to a home crowd. Musical director Eifion Thomas showcased two of his own tunes – Cri Yn Y Nos (written to mark the Rebecca Riots) and Fe Ganwn Gan (a tribute to the events of 1911).
The set was book-ended by Anthem (from Chess) and Yr Anthem Geltaidd (Celtic Anthem). A stirring finale to a rousing evening.
