A dementia-friendly screening of hit film The Greatest Showman was made extra special when Welsh National Opera singers enticed the cinema audience to its feet and a local school choir delivered stunning renditions of the movie’s biggest numbers.
WNO, Colwyn Bay, Theatr Colwyn
Dementia friendly screening of the Greatest Showman and sing-a-long with Welsh National Opera and pupils from St Joseph’s RC School
Katie McHale, Brian Anderson, Olivia Winson and Lorraine Williams sing along and dance to the music along and dance to the music
“It was fantastic, I had the best time ever,” declared lifelong film and music fan Lorraine Williams following the screening in the historic Art Deco surroundings of Colwyn Bay’s Theatr Colwyn.
In a collaboration with Theatr Colwyn, the Welsh National Opera (WNO) team, based at Venue Cymru, Llandudno, lead cinema audiences in singalongs once each month before every dementia-friendly movie screening begins.
The next one will be Mamma Mia! Here we go again at 2.30pm on Thursday, June 20.
The shows are much more informal than usual, with the house lights being left on while singing and dancing in the aisles by the audience is encouraged.
They are part of the UK-wide A Life More Ordinary project on dementia and memory loss.
The aim is to give people living with dementia who might find it difficult to sit still quietly during a normal film screening the opportunity to enjoy cultural events with their family, friends and carers in everyday settings like cinemas.
Welsh National Opera (WNO) singers Sioned Foulkes and Morgana Warren-Jones, and accompanist Annette Bryn Parri got the audience in the mood by leading a ‘Come and Sing’ session of old-time songs for half an hour beforehand.
They had the delighted audience of all ages singing and dancing before the big film was shown complete with subtitles so everyone could join in with the now famous lyrics of The Greatest Showman’s chart-topping tunes.
Made to great acclaim in 2017, the tale of circus impresario PT Barnum, The Greatest Showman, stars Hugh Jackman and Zac Efron.
WNO youth and community projects leader, Morgana Warren Jones, herself an accomplished opera singer, was thrilled with the way it went.
She said: “They are joyful afternoons, there is such a buoyant vibe in the auditorium and all the audience visibly delights in joining in, whether they are living with dementia themselves, carers or just people who have seen that there is a film screening on and decided to come in and watch. They are an absolute pleasure to attend.”
Usually the WNO team leads a second singalong during the film interval but on this occasion the spotlight was turned on a performance by the young choir from St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School, Colwyn Bay. They took to the stage to sing two of the Golden Globe award-winning film’s smash hits, This is Me, and A Million Dreams.
Lorraine Williams who was accompanied on the cinema trip by her carers from Marine Court, Colwyn Bay, said having the school choir sing and WNO lead the audience interaction made the afternoon like a red-carpet premiere.
She was happy to discover the pianist was an old friend, WNO accompanist Annette Bryn Parri who invited Lorraine to join in some piano playing with her.
