Editor:- June 2016 - A few
weeks ago I saw Mary driving in the lane as I was taking a stroll and
escaping from the tyranny of the keyboard (and providing future respite for
my readers).
She paused and opened the window.
Where are you
off to? - I asked.
"Gylndebourne rehearsals. I've got a part as a
walk on in
the
Meistersingers."
So now I'll be watching out for a certain
bucket of water to appear when I see it. And that's all I can tell you for now
about the plot. Because I never read the story in advance.
Instead I
see the opera first and follow the story on the very well scripted surtitles
(like simultaneous translation - but better) and then when I get home, I
read up a little bit on the web, and as it gets towards the end of the season I
start to read back on what I've seen (and been unable to see) in the annual
book they sell in the imaginatively stocked
little shop they have there -
which seems to stock all kinds of things you didn't know you needed before -
including well designed champagne stoppers and chocolate.
I used to
buy DVDs at Gylndebourne too.
The best time to do that is after the
performance has ended. Shopping and drinking tea is a better use of your time
than sitting in a line of cars in the exit traffic jam.
The DVDs
I've bought there have mostly been souvenirs of operas I'd seen the previous
year - although a new space saving way to revisit these past performances has
recently crept into my app space - via the
Digital Theatre.
This
streaming service - a large screen variant of which I first saw at the
Picture House in Uckfield -
enables you to can watch plays and operas as easily as you rent a movie from
itunes. (And you can pay using your itunes account too.)
When it
comes to the choice of how many things you can watch, however, the little shop
in Glydebourne has a lot more stock than Digital Theatre but I hope that the
collaborating parties will extend the range so that for those of us whose DVD
players have long since been recycled and who tire of seeing pc security
messages on their screen when watching videos via a pc perched on the
coffeee table hooked up through an HDMI cable.
Being so close to
Gylndebourne is one of the unexpected delights of living in Chiltington Lane.
And John and Sheila have told me that some of their year on year returning
B&B guests have
Gylndebourne as the primary purpose of their stay.
Also on the
calendar for June and July 2016 on the live singing theme, and with
participation by neigbours in Chiltington Lane are the following events.
the
Fletching Singers
The
Fletching
Singers will perform 'A Sussex Summer' on Sunday, June 19th at 6.30pm
at Cumnor House School, Danehill.
Explaining how it works - Helen - from Chiltington Lane who is one
of the singers - said "This will involve a picnic in that we have the
first part of the concert, and then an interval for supper (sort of
Glyndebourne style), and then the second half. This music is a little
eclectic, but it is usually a nice evening."
the East Sussex
Community Choir
The
East Sussex Community Choir
will have their Summer Concert on Saturday, 2nd July at 7.30 pm at
the Lewes Town Hall. The programme is Rossini's
Petite Messe
Solennelle. Among the choir members - Chiltington Lane resident Janet says
it's only the first bit which sounds like a mass. And it's not such a little
piece as the title would suggest.
More notes like this as I hear about
them.
And maybe I'll add some photos from the events after they've
happened.
PS - the live drama from the lane is not just about the
singing. Take a peek also at
Man in a hat
(Cyrano) |
