It’s not often you have a crowd singing along and dancing in the aisles at an orchestral concert, but nothing could have been more natural at Saturday’s fun and fabulous DSO Plays Abba concert.
A packed Dunedin Town Hall audience was treated to a top-notch night of joyous entertainment from start to finish, courtesy of the DSO, under the baton of arranger Tom Rainey, five excellent singers and a skilful live band.
From the opening number, Waterloo, we knew we were in for something special, and the hits kept coming thick and fast — Fernando, Mamma Mia, SOS, Dancing Queen, Thank You for the Music, Money, Money, Money, and more.
Led by vastly experienced pop diva and School of Performing Arts teaching fellow Arlie McCormick, the singers — Emily Kerr-Bell, Sophie Whibley, Arlie McCormick, Ben Hayward and Jarrod Shirtcliffe, shone throughout.
Dressed in fabulous ABBA -style outfits, the singers took turns to sing the lead in different songs, tackling complex timings and five-part harmonies with style and flare.
Given how many songs they worked their way through, they also showed impressive stamina.
Adding their own groove to the mix was a great team of instrumentalists led by Michael Grant (keyboard), with David Harrison (guitar), Andy Lynch (bass), and DSO principal percussionist Robert Craigie (drums).
And through it all, providing sterling support and exciting flourishes was the DSO, dressed up to the nines and obviously having a great time.
It was all wonderful, but for this reviewer, the best moments were Dancing Queen (of course), Money, Money, Money, and Fernando, but each audience member no doubt had their own favourites.
The smiles on everyone’s faces at the end of the concert said it all — people love ABBA done well.
Congratulations to all involved on a brilliant and joyful night of music!
