Hey Guys!
I have been wondering for a while what to write about next and have finally decided that I should tell you about The Arcadians (Arcs for short).
The Arcadians is an amateur musical theatre company based in Birmingham. I joined them in 2019 for their staged concert Magic of the Movies and I am so glad I did!
When I went to my first rehearsal, I was really nervous and dragged my friend Elsie along with me. I needn’t have worried. Everyone was so friendly, I think I actually spoke to every person in the company and they were all so welcoming! We both enjoyed it so much we both decided to stay and audition for solos in the show and I’ve been to almost every rehearsal since.
I have been in choirs and musicals since secondary school so I am a very confident singer but my acting and dancing definitely need a lot of work! But in the Arcs, it doesn’t matter what level you are – everyone is welcome! There are people from all walks of life and even more importantly everyone is one big family. There is none of the stereotypical nastiness you might expect from amateur dramatics as everyone is there to have fun and put on the best show possible.
In Magic of the Movies, I was lucky enough to be one of the divas in the song Skid Row from Little Shop of Horrors. I didn’t know the musical before being given the solo but when I watched it, I loved it! The divas basically show up to add in more harmony and help to narrate the story. The divas have so much sass it was really fun to try and bring that same energy not just with my voice but with my acting and body language ad well. Being in the chorus for the other numbers was also an amazing experience because it was so much fun! Don’t get me wrong, rehearsing for a show can be stressful at times but there was never any point where I didn’t want to be there!
The next show we did was the musical Sweet Charity. I knew a lot of the music from the show having performed many of the songs before but I didn’t know the story until we started rehearsals. I decided not to audition for this show because most of the rehearsals were going to be during my masters research project so I didn’t want the extra pressure. But I was also happy just to be in the chorus, enjoying learning the dances and trying to keep a straight face during some particularly hilarious ad libs from a fellow cast member – during one of the shows we were having a discussion about adopting 28,000 dogs and calling them all Elizabeth 1st!
Our next staged concert is going to be called Making History. We are going to perform songs from shows set over the last 100 years that show how society has changed. There are some really amazing songs in this show. From Anything Goes where the whole cast gets to try some tap-style dancing, to In The Same Boat where there are 3 songs are happening at once, to Finale where we celebrate what brings people together. I have a solo song in this show as well as being in some of the smaller group numbers. My solo song is called Another Hundred People from the show Company. It is about the hustle and bustle of New York City where you are surrounded by people and yet also alone and isolated. I am finding it quite technically challenging as it is a patter song with lots of fast paced words which switch into long held notes with crescendo and vibrato and then back to the fast paced phrases. I genuinely feel exhausted when I get to the end of the song but I know that it will be totally worth it in the end! This show has been so much fun to rehearse and I feel like I have made so much progress which is in no small part down to the friendliness of the company and the amazing support of the production team Ella, Jacob and Emily.
I love performing but the friends I have made at Arcs are the reason I enjoy it so much and keep going back. Making History was due to be performed at the end of May but unfortunately we have had to postpone due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Luckily for us we have an amazing committee who are working hard to make sure we can perform Making History as soon as we can make it safe for both our cast and the audience.
If anyone is interested in finding out more about the Arcs, here is the link to their facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TheArcadiansMTC/
Thanks for reading!
Bex
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