The Wonderful Jukebox Cafe
WOW! The Jukebox Café started off with a pulsating “Rock Around the Clock” and it didn’t stop! The publicity poster said it would be a “toe-tapping, finger-snapping cabaret” and it was. To enter you had to knock and get past the Venue Security (in real life our curate Graham) and then you moved into a transformed darkened Parish Room with pink chandeliers, walls decked in shiny beads, draped ‘velvet’ curtains and decorative wallpaper. Jayne Gill and Valieria Gomez let their imagination go! That wasn’t all – the usual plastic brown chairs had comfortable velvet cushions made by a lovely team of sewers.
The cabaret of five talented singers sang pop songs from the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s. They were glitzy, glamorous, energetic, funny and moving. Jenny Lupa sparkled and I loved the duet “Love me/don’t” which she sang with Roger Limb who did the music orchestration. Jeremy not only has a super voice but he has some amazing moves, especially in “You’re so square” and “Hound Dog”. Bonnie Taylor was lots of fun, particularly with “I am a Woman” and “I want to be seduced”! Ashley Collin moved us all with “I who have nothing” as did Shereen Abdullah with “Pearl’s a singer”. But it was hard to choose favourite numbers because every song was so good.
The Jukebox Cafe was conceived and produced by Gaynor Bassey-Fish who sang the poignant “In The Wee Small Hours” in very glamorous silky pyjamas in the first half and in the second half a very different number “Trouble” – and she meant it! She then showed us that she really can shimmy!
It was a really fun evening!
