Bringing a ‘Joyous Noël' to a new audience

WESTFALL — It will, indeed, be a joyous evening, at the free performance of The Noël Coward Songbook, on Dec. 3 at the Delaware Valley High School Auditorium. The American Readers Theatre, in collaboration with the Delaware Valley School District will present an evening of music by Sir Noël Coward as part of a grant sponsored by the Noël Coward Foundation. The Noël Coward Foundation is based in London and its mission is to educate future generations about the genius of Noël Coward. The Foundation particularly wants to encourage companies producing Coward’s work to seek new audiences, primarily, though not exclusively, from the 16-24 year-old age group. This grant to ART and the DVSD is the Foundation’s first grant to a U.S. public high school. Only two other grants were given in the U.S. this year; one was to the Globe Theater in Chicago and the other to the Good Speed Musical Theater in Connecticut. The free concert, opened to the public, will be performed by the members of the Noel Coward Project. The concert is the exhilarating result of a ten- week musical theater workshop, directed by Jeffrey David Stocker and with Sandy Stalter as the musical director. More than 20 young people auditioned for the rigorous workshop, but only thirteen were chosen; seven current DV high school students and six recent DV grads within the pre-selected age range suggested by the Foundation. These are very talented young people. In addition to the regular musical rehearsals, the workshop reached across the academic curriculum where the participants researched the times and works of Sir Noël Coward in England and Europe throughout the 20s, 30s and 40s. They learned about the culture and history of the times, his movies and plays, as well as Coward’s music. During the ten-week workshop, the participants were also introduced to Jeffrey Johnson, a Tony-Award- winning casting director who was also a personal assistant to Sir Noël Coward. The group also had the opportunity to meet with James Weis, the New York hair and make-up artist to celebrities like Christie Brinkley and other top models. The Workshop will conclude with a trip to New York City where the participants will perform their songs at the historic National Arts Club during the annual Noël Coward Birthday Celebration on December 16. Members of the workshop include: Dionna Eshleman, Morgane Fouse, Natasha green, Taylor James, Kurt Merrill, Timothy Webster, and Jaime Wright. Matthew Tidridge has been recording the entire workshop on his digital camera so there will be a copy of this innovative model project given to the Noël Coward Foundation. The performance of the Noël Coward Songbook on Dec. 3 promises to bring back many wonderful, fanciful moments for many of us and to introduce new audiences to the wit and sophistication that was Noel Coward’s trademark. Noel Coward was the best all-round entertainer of the literary and musical worlds of the 20th century. He invented the concept of celebrity and was the essence of chic in the Jazz Age of the 20s and 30s. He was known as “The Master,” a moniker that indicated the level of his talent and achievement in so many of the entertainment arts. He was a librettist, a musical composer, singer, dancer, film director, stage producer, and cabaret artist. If you go What: The Noël Coward Songbook- A Concert Where: DVSD High School Auditorium When: Dec. 3, at 7:30 p.m. Free: No reservations necessary The public is invited