Community of Bridlington Celebrates Beach Life

Community of Bridlington Celebrates Beach Life

BRIDLINGTON, England, July 17, 2011/PRNewswire/ --

"I feel like a rock star" sums it up for Bailey, aged 5, who starred as
a fish in Saturday's performance of Beached at the Bridlington Spa. Another
participant, Peter, aged 68, commented, "The experience is something I will
carry with me for the rest of my life".

Opera North's community opera Beached, written by composer Harvey Brough
to a text by Lee Hall, was performed twice on Saturday by hundreds of local
residents. Performers spanning ages 2-82, took part in the creative,
innovative and liberating show based around 'a day at the beach' in the
small seaside town of Bridlington.

Some of the highlights of the one and a half hour production included
old ladies whizzing around the 'sand' on mobility scooters, thirty toddlers
dressed as sea creatures and outstanding performances from local community
members.

Comments Richard Mantle, General Director, Opera North:

"Harvey Brough and Lee Hall are incredible writers and Opera North was
delighted to be able to engage artists with such high profiles and
credibility for our community project - this is something to celebrate."

"We commissioned a new piece of work with the knowledge that it would be
bold and exciting and in the current economic climate where works like this
are few and far between, we took a brave step to nurture and broaden the
artistic landscape of this community and the talent within it."

"The last two years are a fantastic achievement - we have worked with
over 2,700 individuals looking at how singing can be used to address
important local issues, such as regeneration. Beached has been a wonderful
opportunity for many of those people to come together and celebrate their
town and what they have done together. We hope that firm foundations have
now been laid for Bridlington to continue its singing journey."

The performances of Beached were made up of the following:

- Pupils from Bay Primary School
- The Bridlington Community Chorus, set up by Opera North
- Mums and toddlers from East Riding Children's Centre
- Teenagers from local secondary schools
- Members of MENCAP Music and Movement Group
- Professional singers; Meeta Raval, Ann Taylor, Mark le Brocq and
Richard Burkhard
- Nine musicians
- Director Karen Gillingham, designer Ruth Paton and animateur Lea
Cornthwaite worked with the groups in the run up to the performance
- Composer and Musical Director Harvey Brough

Two Years of Highlights:

- The Big Sing - 1,000 7-11 year olds from eight different
schools perform in The Spa.
- Little Brid Sing - 400 4-6 year old from eight different schools
perform in The Spa.
- 2,700 individuals work directly with Opera North during this
period
- Weekly visits for two years into Bay Primary School, where
singers enhance the school curriculum.
- All schools in Bridlington take part in workshops, training and
performances
- A new choir for 7-11 year old boys - Boys of Bridlington Sing
(BoBS)
- A Bridlington Youth Chorus for teenagers
- Training for 150 local teachers, playworkers and artists

Beached was performed at The Spa, Bridlington on Saturday 16 July 2011
at 2pm and 6pm.

Notes to editors:

In 2009 Opera North received funding from Sing Up, the Music Manifesto's
National Singing Programme, East Riding of Yorkshire Council and Yorkshire
Forward to run a large-scale programme of singing and creative activity in
the town.

The programme aimed to provide access to high quality singing activity
for local people of all ages, and promote the benefits of singing through
fun, engaging and sociable activities that enhance quality of life.

http://www.operanorth.co.uk/

Source: Opera North

For further information and images please contact: Julia Lumley, Press & PR Assistant +44(0)113-223-3528 / julia.lumley@operanorth.co.uk OR Julia Gregg, Press & PR Assistant +44(0)113-223-3522 / julia.gregg@operanorth.co.uk OR Lindsey Porter, Press & PR Manager +44(0)113-223-3526 / +44(0)7956-647573 / lindsey.porter@operanorth.co.uk

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