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Irish Independent
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Choral Festival celebrates 40 years of music as Wexford nominees line up for prestigious awards
A standout moment came when local musical society, St Michaels Theatre Musical Society (SMTMS) won their category, earning top honours under the Musical Direction of Kevin Kennedy. Competing against other musical societies and choirs, SMTMS earned top place in Competition F, winning the Maeve Wilson Trophy for the third time since it commenced in 2019. 'I am incredibly proud of our choir. The dedication, energy and commitment of our members really shone through on stage. It's especially wonderful also to win the Maeve Wilson cup. Maeve was so fond of local talent and she would be delighted to see us win this for another year', said Mr Kennedy. Mr Kennedy also paid tribute to Ms Heffernan, describing her as 'not only a valued member of our society, but a valued member of AIMS (Association of Irish Musical Societies), having joined the Choral Festival committee 15 years ago, and taking over as administrator four years ago. The entire weekend is a credit to her leadership and hard work'. The festival opened on Friday, May 16, in which 16 schools participated in the schools' competition, much to delight of the passers by in Brennan's Lane as choirs took advantage of the revamped space to warm up. Several competitions were held over the day, comprising primary school choirs, secondary school choirs, junior musical cameos and soloists to name but a few items. The day was a showcase of the passion and promise of the next generation of musical talent. Hosted by Chris and Roisin Currid, A Night at the Musicals was the spectacular Saturday night event. With the steer of Mr Kennedy, this concert featured an array of talent from 10 musical societies from across the AIMS South East Region; some performing highlights from their recent productions and some performing brand new arrangements. It was an evening filled with excellent music, standout performances, joyful energy, good humour and charm, making it a thoroughly entertaining experience for the sold-out event. Competitions continued on Sunday at St. Michael's Theatre and The Parish Church, with an impressive 38 choirs comprising approximately 1,100 singers performing throughout the day. Both venues, praised widely for their acoustics and welcoming atmosphere, proved to be the perfect settings for events. Reflecting on the occasion, Festival Director Lizzy Heffernan said: 'This weekend was really special. Celebrating 40 years of the AIMS Choral Festival here in our town and seeing so many groups, both young and old, come together in song was just brilliant. New Ross was alive with music, and the atmosphere was electric.' Beyond the music, the festival brought a welcome social and economic boost to the town. The shops and pubs benefitted greatly from the impressive turnout. The recently opened Brennan's Lane added to the vibrant atmosphere, where the weekend was rounded off with a lively open-air performance by local group, The Nomads. South Street was buzzing as choirs and spectators came together in joyful song, while gathering together along the street. There was also great excitement for many in attendance as AIMS announced their nominees for the 2025 awards, which will see 11 Wexford nominees who have been shortlisted from various groups across the county up against drama groups across the country for the top spots. The nominees include: Jacinta Kavanagh, Nominated by Carnew Musical Society; Best Visual - Sullivan: Enniscorthy Musical Society - Joseph & His Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat; Best Technical – Gilbert: Wexford Light Opera Society - Young Frankenstein; Best Stage Management – Gilbert: Oyster Lane Theatre Group - A Christmas Carol; Stage Manager: Colin Murphy; Best Comedienne: Antonia Close as Frau Blucher in Young Frankenstein - Wexford Light Opera Society; Best Actor: Kevin Reade as Ebenezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol - Oyster Lane Theatre Group; Best Male Singer - Richard O'Toole as Joseph in Joseph and his Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat - Enniscorthy Musical Society; Best Overall Show – Gilbert: Oyster Lane Theatre Group - A Christmas Carol. Meanwhile, two top Wexford musical directors are in contention for the spot as Best Musical Director – Gilbert, as Patrick Clancy and David Hayes have been shortlisted for their work with Oyster Lane Theatre Group's adaptation of A Christmas Carol and Wexford Light Opera Society's Young Frankenstein, respectively. The Enniscorthy Musical Society has also been nominated for the prestigious Adjudicator's Special Award - Moment of Theatre for the camaraderie, energy and full commitment of 11 brothers' hatred of Joseph in Joseph and his Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat. The awards, which will be held in Killarney, Co. Kerry, will take place on Saturday, June 14.
CBC
08-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
These high schoolers weren't even born in the 90s, but they're bringing back the hits
The '90s are back at a London high school this week as a group of students is taking the stage to perform grunge, rock and pop hits from the iconic decade. 'Smells Like the 90s' is a musical tribute by the Musical Theatre students at Clarke Road Secondary School. The show features hits from bands like Metallica, Spice Girls, TLC, and, of course, Nirvana. It runs from Thursday to Saturday. "It's funny cause walking around, you see a lot of people in cargo pants," said music teacher Kevin Kennedy. "A lot of the trends of the 90s are coming back — and if you talk to people, they're listening to the '90s still." The show helps to deepen the respect for the '90s among students, he said, and to learn about the decade of music and changes that took place. For some students, it's expanding their playlist, he said. Drums, guitar, saxophones and flutes It's great news for student Brooklyn Taitt, who stayed an extra year at Clarke Road just to perform in the show. "I've been in the music program for five years, and I was really interested in the '90s music. I wanted to play in a rock band, and it was just so interesting having all the wind instruments and everything in these big songs," she told CBC's Afternoon Drive. "It was just interesting bringing songs back and having the nostalgia of everything," she said. "Even though I wasn't there in the '90s, it just feels like so much energy from everybody." Taitt is already a '90s fan and knew "every song in the entire set list," she said, and was excited to see the show come together after students have been working so hard since September. "It's just so nice to see it be a final product with all of our energy and all of our love for each other and just being able to have fun with it." Grade 11 student Koda Greene-Cavanagh, who likes the grunge vibe of the decade, first got introduced to '90s music from her dad, but now listens to it "all the time," she said. She plays flute, which is featured in her favourite song of the night, Guns N' Roses' November Rain. "It's really flute heavy, you can hear me really well. It really pops out," she said. "I'm also excited for the two people to see the set because the set is really cool, and all the lights." Dress, sing and dance like it's the '90s Those who make it out to the show are encouraged to dress like the '90s, said Kennedy, along with singing and dancing to the music. "It's a lot as much fun for the audience as it is for the band, which is the point of the evening," he said. The show was originally supposed to take place in 2020, but was cancelled due to the pandemic. This year, it was time to check the box and do the show, said Kennedy. Some original people from the band are still helping with this show. The group is taking the show on the road to perform at an arts school in Cleveland and take a trip to the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame.
The Guardian
01-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Coronation Street's Kevin Kennedy looks back: ‘I collapsed after going two days without alcohol. I knew I'd die if I carried on'
Born in 1961 in Wythenshawe, Manchester, Kevin Kennedy is best known for playing Norman 'Curly' Watts on ITV soap opera Coronation Street. The Manchester Polytechnic graduate portrayed the supermarket worker from 1983 to 2003, as well as sustaining a career in music as a solo artist and in bands. He has appeared in musicals including We Will Rock You and Rock of Ages, and stars in Punk Off – The Sounds of Punk and New Wave, which tours until 7 March. That Barbour jacket and I have been through a lot together. Being Curly was always comforting, like putting on a pair of slippers you've worn for years. This photo reminds me of a time when everything felt brand new. In any picture taken of me in Coronation Street before 1998, I would have been in active addiction. It all changed when I collapsed after going two days without alcohol. That incident scared the hell out of me, and I knew I would die if I carried on. I needed to change, and it had to be dramatic. The outcome would have been dramatic, otherwise. By 2002, I'd been sober for four years. The man in this photo was very much coming to terms with what was in front of him – I was up for everything and scared of everything at the same time. I remember feeling completely insane, but in a really good way: my insanity had been channelled into positivity. This absolute belief that I could do anything. For example, I had just signed to Simon Cowell's label. It was before he was involved in The X Factor, when he was just the head of BMG. I had decided I wanted to play more music and sent a demo to him, and he liked it. He didn't know who I was as it was under a pseudonym, just to avoid any 'soapism'. When we finally met he said, 'Oh wait, it's you!' But it didn't turn him off. I'd be filming an episode of Coronation Street on a Friday afternoon and by the evening I'd be in Memphis, playing on Beale Street, or in Arkansas at a country music festival. Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson would be headlining, and barely visible at the bottom of the poster was my name. It was an exciting time, but as I was sober I was feeling everything for the first time in a long while. That included fear and uncertainty. As if I had stage fright of the whole world. Another change was on its way, too: when this photo was taken my role in Coronation Street was coming to a natural end. That sort of news would usually send an actor into a spiral of depression but my glass was half-full. Plus my wife and I had just found out we were expecting our first child. It felt as if everything was happening at once. Growing up in Manchester at the time of punk gave me the confidence to believe that anything was possible. I was never brave enough to go full punk, with the hair and clothes, but it was the mindset that I loved: that you could do whatever you wanted if you just got up off your arse. I'd turn on Granada News at 6pm and see my peers, people that I knew from the area, becoming actors, writers, poets, sculptors or politicians. Punk was a galvanising force, and for me that manifested itself at the age of 14, sitting in a bedroom with Johnny Marr. Along with [the Smiths bassist] Andy Rourke, we were in a band called Paris Valentinos. As soon as I heard Johnny play the guitar, I thought: this is special, what a privilege to be here for this. Fast-forward to when I was 19. I was in Hamlet at Sheffield Crucible, and at the hall nearby the Smiths were playing. It was surreal to think a few years before, Johnny and I had been putting tunes together for a local gig for the Queen's jubilee. We'd perform with just one amp and one mic, and the stage was a kitchen table. It was punk, and that was all we needed. I was never shy growing up, but my creativity definitely needed channelling. I knew I wanted to be in the entertainment industry. However, when you go to see your career officer in Wythenshawe and say, 'I want to be an actor', they look at you like your head's come off. Regardless, I applied to drama school and I got in. I was 22 when I auditioned for Curly Watts. I'd been in the West End of London when the producers first started sniffing around. This went on and on. Eventually they asked me to go for an audition. I got a train up to Manchester, read for the part on Sunday, and started work on Monday. Sign up to Inside Saturday The only way to get a look behind the scenes of the Saturday magazine. Sign up to get the inside story from our top writers as well as all the must-read articles and columns, delivered to your inbox every weekend. after newsletter promotion The most attractive thing about joining the cast of Coronation Street was that I didn't have to pay for my digs. I could stay at my mum's house in Manchester and get the washing done. It was two weeks' filming but I'd get a week off in the middle, so I could go and sign on. The fame never crossed my mind – it was just a home gig and I was happy I was doing it. It wasn't until the episodes went out that I realised how powerful that show was, and still is. Walking down the street and having people turn and look took some adjusting to. On the outside everything in my life looked amazing: I had a great job, I drove a nice car, I lived in a nice house. Meanwhile, my personal life was in turmoil. I was a swan on top, but underneath the water was chaos. When I stepped into Norman's shoes there was a bit of respite. I think a lot of actors feel like that, irrespective of addiction. Acting is their safe place, because they don't have to be themselves. At first I really enjoyed drinking, but quite quickly I became dependent on alcohol. It was self-medication. I don't blame the booze; it could have been anything. There was nothing sinister from my childhood, or the rest of life, that triggered the addiction. I just liked it. I liked the feeling and the escape. In my head I became a better dancer, funnier, more handsome. Fame was never the reason for drinking. I think it would have happened whatever my job was. But I suddenly had the funds to enable myself and speed up the process. It also sped up the recovery, for which I am very grateful. Sometimes I look at other people my age and think, 'It must be horrible being that old.' I still run around the stage like a lunatic. An hour later my 63-year-old body reminds me that I am no longer 19. But I don't care. I hope I never stop playing. Right now I'm living on a tour bus, a rock'n'roll sleeper with a 'no poo' toilet. It doesn't sound romantic but it's that element of the job that attracted me to theatre in the first place – going from venue to venue, town to town, one step ahead of the law, breaking hearts as you go. I'm not breaking hearts and I'm not one step ahead of the law, but the spirit is the same. This picture marked the start of a new stage of my life. It's a quizzical look, as if I'm asking, what's going to happen to me now? I've got a child on the way. I'm losing the job that has looked after me for 20 years. Why am I not depressed? I am completely terrified, but also – how exciting.
Yahoo
22-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Punk Off: A new show featuring iconic hits and a famous face
A punk music show featuring Coronation Street's Kevin Kennedy is coming to Reading. Punk Off – The Sounds of Punk and New Wave will be coming to The Hexagon, Queens Walk, on March 5. The show will feature hits from various iconic bands, including The Sex Pistols, Blondie, The Clash, Ramones, and Joy Division. (Image: Punk Off) Kevin Kennedy, known for his role as Curly Watts in Coronation Street, will be taking on the role of the narrator for the show. With real-world band experience, having played with Johnny Marr and Andy Rourke in Paris Valentinos, Kennedy is set to bring his unique perspective to the stage. He said: "I'm so excited to be joining the cast of Punk Off. "When punk exploded on the scene in 1977, it truly was a revolution. "It changed our music, our fashion, and every aspect of the arts. "I witnessed it all. "Let's do it again, together." Punk Off will take audiences on a nostalgic journey from the beginnings of punk in the 1970s to its later movements in the 1980s and 1990s. The high-energy show aims to bring to life the story of a music genre that changed the world. A talented cast of musicians, singers, and dancers will bring punk and new wave hits, attitude, and fashion to the stage, promising to thrill audiences, from original punk fans to those new to the genre. The show will also feature hits originally performed by The Damned, Buzzcocks, The Undertones, The Police, The Jam, Siouxsie and The Banshees, The Pretenders, Joy Division, The Stranglers, and many more. Punk Off will kick off its UK and Ireland tour on January 22, 2025, at The Courtyard in Hereford and will continue until March 9, 2025, at the Dominion Theatre in London. The show will make a stop at The Hexagon in Reading on March 5, 2025. Tickets for the show are available from theatre websites, with full details available at The show is suitable for audiences aged 14 and over. Punk Off – The Sounds of Punk and New Wave promises to be an "incredible rollercoaster journey" through punk and new wave, bringing the iconic sounds and spirit of punk to audiences across the UK and Ireland. With Kevin Kennedy as the narrator, the show is set to be a unique celebration of a genre that has had a lasting impact on music and culture. The show will be at The Hexagon, Queens Walk, Reading, Berkshire, RG1 7Q, on March 5.
