2000, History and other events

Another updated version of a classic - this time Lehar's Merry Widow - proved a winner for DVS, but this time we didn't have to rewrite the words. A shortened version of Bach's Christmas Oratorio, with string quartet, taught us of many things that can go wrong! We donated $2400 to charity, a total of $68,800.

DV Singers had been invited to sing at an Australia Day ceremony at Eltham. We quickly put together the Les Miserables medley, with young Esther Counsel singing "Castle on a Cloud", and sang "Advance Australia Fair". We had a rehearsal the week before and had a reasonable crowd, seeing that Dianne had only started ringing a few days before. Two of the basses switched to tenor, and Beryl was asked to conduct so that Graham could help the basses. He also sang a tenor solo.

The group managed to cope quite well, considering that we hadn't done it for five years and many hadn't as seen it before. Esther got an ovation for "Castle on a Cloud" and it was a big audience. It was raining pretty heavily by the time it finished. There wasn't room for us it to attend the rest of the ceremony, and we got an early afternoon tea, which always pleases Graham.

The regular year started with another series of Dance, Drama and Singing classes, with others singing madrigals with Irene Hayes. Merri Saltmarsh took the dancing, Lynne Counsel the Drama and Graham Ford the singing. These all proved very popular with twenty-five attending.

Following the Bach, David Cox was invited to conduct the annual carols, with forty participating. After the success of the Pachelbel's Canon version of "The First Noel", Ian produced an arrangement of "Away in a Manger" and "0 Christmas Tree" to the accompaniment of "Jesu joy of Man's Desiring". There were two performances in Diamond Creek and one on the Ivanhoe Boulevard, both well received.