PUBLISHED 17 June 2022
On June 15th we were treated to our first AfternoonTeatime concert held on the sunken tennis courts outside the Sixth Form entrance.
Our Teatime concerts provide an informal opportunity for soloists and small ensembles to perform to an intimate audience of family and friends. In keeping with our student-led approach, students are invited to sign-up to perform, resulting in an eclectic programme, mixing genres and instruments. After hosting dedicated concerts for each school section throughout the year, the final Teatime concert included performers from Year 7 to Year 12.
Guests enjoyed afternoon tea and beautiful evening sun, as Carly W. and Hugo F. (Year 10) opened the programme with Almost There from The Princess and the Frog. Musical theatre contributions continued with Charlotte J’s cheerful rendition of My Favourite Things (The Sound of Music) and Alex W’s (Year 10) incredible performance of Someone Like You (Jekyll and Hyde) and Anya K.’s (Year 10) stunning On My Own (Les Misérables).
It was fantastic to see diverse contributions from the Lower School, including Samuel B. (Year 7) on saxophone, Marcus S. (Year 8) on guitar, both in a solo performance and in a duet with friend, Mayank C. (also Year 8) on piano, playing Alone by Marshmello, which they had learnt and practised without the aid of their teachers.
Building on his impressive performance at the AKS Cabaret last term, Hugo played the aptly named, ‘s Wonderful (Gershwin), Louis also gave us a similarly wonderful performance of Lush Life (Billy Strayhorn).
As a prelude to this summer’s Music Tour to the Rhine Valley, Miranda A. (Year 12) put her German skills to the test in singing Ein Bisschen Frieden in German, accompanying herself on the ukulele. Her sister, Jessica (Year 10), showed that musical talent runs in the family when she played Andante, Sonata in Eb (Mendelssohn) on the clarinet.
Other highlights included Alex C.’s (Year 11) perfectly timed Here Comes the Sun drum solo and Year 10 band, 8:Fifteen ending the evening on a high with Abba’s catchy Name of the Game.
It was no wonder that by the end of the evening, the audience had grown with a group of dog walkers, who had broken off their evening stroll to line the perimeter of the grounds to enjoy the music too.
As the evening drew to a close, there was a surprise storming of the performance space, with farmers, Boggis and Bunce and Bean from the forthcoming Fantastic Mr fox production interrupting Michael Waterhouse’s closing speech to run amok among the audience. They were in search of the wily Mr Fox, as they shared flyers to promote the virtual event on the 4th July (AKS Facebook 7pm, YouTube 7.30pm). Given their fearsome looks and commitment to their characters, you’d be mad to miss it!