As told by Nic Doodson - creator, producer and director
“I’ve got an idea for a show…”
It’s 2016 and Andrew Kay and I are celebrating the success of a sold-out performance of our latest collaboration when he turned to me and said these fateful words. It was at this moment that The Choir of Man began, and perhaps fittingly, it was over a pint in a beer garden.
Andrew described the genesis of the idea; it’s a group of ordinary blokes who meet up to sing a few songs over a drink or two. It isn’t only about the drinking, nor is it only about the singing. It’s about the simple act of being together. It’s about laughing together, crying together, singing, shouting, talking together… whatever it is, it’s about the pleasure of being in the same place at the same time as the people you love. “…And,” he said with a twinkle in his eye, “We should call it The Choir of Man.”
And so, an idea was born.
In the time before this conversation, I had worked for the previous 20 or so years of my career as a professional singer, so I knew a bit about singing. Also, having spent a fair amount of time in pubs during the same period, it seemed to me the simplest of ideas to combine the two experiences.
It was the perfect fit– both choirs and pubs are environments where you can raise your voices in joy or in sorrow. And they’re both places where it’s more important to listen than it is to shout. So, we set out to look for normal guys. Men who could sing, play instruments, maybe even move a bit, but most importantly, guys who seemed like they’d be at home in a pub with their mates. Our aim was to create a show about a group of friends who sang together, and we genuinely ended up with a group of friends creating a show together. It’s funny how these things work out.
“As a male voice choir, we wanted to make a show that brings joy to people - a show that is fun and frivolous and silly, but also one that speaks to some of those difficulties we face and gently questions what masculinity might look like today. It is an invitation to either forget your troubles for the evening, or to reach out to a loved one and share them.
Above all, we wanted to make a show that puts an arm around people, of all genders, and takes them on a bloody good night out. Sometimes it’s literally lifesaving.”
After three strenuous weeks devising and rehearsing, we presented our show at a venue in Tottenham, North London performing for an audience of friends and family for the first time. We could barely fit in the room we’d hired and ended up having to perform almost on top of the audience, but they loved every minute of it. From the free beer (of course) to the traditional choral arrangement of “Chandelier” by Sia, everything was lapped up by the crowd.
The energy was electric– I’d never experienced anything like it.
At the end of the first performance Andrew turned to me and said, “I think you may have something here…”. And we did, and here we are today. After Edinburgh, Coventry and Adelaide Fringes, three previous US national tours, three sold out seasons at the Sydney Opera House, two Cruise ships, European and Australian tours, and an Olivier Award nomination for our West End run we find ourselves here in Fayetteville for one night only, Tuesday, Jan. 27; and it can all be traced back to a pint in a beer garden.
Fitting indeed.
