Nearly 1,700 people every December relish the pageantry and feasting of a madrigal dinner, partaking of the festivities, food and fun at one of two area events.
Music students at Traverse City West Senior High School and members of the Presbyterian Church, the latter with the help of community volunteers and Traverse City Central High School students, serve up their respective performances to welcome the advent season.
The 11th Annual Elizabethan Madrigal Feaste offers four nights of entertainment at West High School, with a gourmet dinner coupled with songs and skits, music and drama. Their Saturday and Sunday evening performance line up begins this weekend with one show per night and continues the same schedule next weekend.
"They get fired up about it every year, I think it's one of our favorites, right up there with the musical, that kids look forward to,” said Russ Larimer, choral director for the school. "They love getting involved with the costuming, removing them from the every day.”
The event is a major fund raiser for the school's vocal department. Proceeds are earmarked for both a European tour conducted every three years, with the next one scheduled for the summer of 2009, and to defray costs of festivals and other expenses.
Members of the Choral-Aires ensemble guide the show and perform throughout, aided by the school's Chorale, Bella Voce and Westmen ensembles, the Queen's own Royale Herald Trumpeters and other musicians. A traditional group sing-a-long midway through the evening brings the audience into the performance.
The student performers master both classic and new music every year on a tight timeline to get ready for the Elizabethan Feaste.
"It can be a lot of hard work but it pays off in the end, always,” said Sarah Johnson, a senior who will be singing in her second madrigal dinner with the Chorale and Bella Voce. "Definitely [the evening] is really different because we're serving the tables and speak in an accent — we try to get as much into the era and it's combined with drama not just singing.”
The program features mostly medieval music with a sprinkling of modern offerings. As for the skit that drives the evening, Larimer gathers material for it all year and weaves it into a cohesive narrative with a comic flair. This year's theme is a spoof of the musical "Hair Spray,” which Larimer dubbed "Hair Fray.”
"At times parts of it are a group effort but mostly it's just me,” he noted.
The Presbyterian Church's evening features performances by Central High School's Choral-Aires and two trumpeters from the school as well as Renaissance court dancing by the Ballet Royale de Courtiers, a dance troop based at Ballet, Etc. In addition, musicians, manor guards, merry maids, an abbot, a sprite, a juggler and a magician will put in appearances during the evening.
"The youth of the church have roles that they play, they're so excited when they're old enough to play different roles,” said Kim Lohr, who co-chairs the event with Kris Wendland. "It's fun to see the kids perform and the church is just totally transformed — it's a very festive feeling.”
Presenting their dinner in honor of the advent, the church draws both members and the community to sell-out shows each year. Hundreds of church volunteers of all ages help to put on the event, cooking, serving, cleaning up and making costumes, all with the shared mission of reverently launching the Christmas season.
"When you come to this you have a sense that the world is in good hands,” added Lohr. "When you hear the youth sing, their voices are like angels, it's their gift to everyone attending.”
"It's just magical,” she added of the whole evening.
The Presbyterian Church's 40th annual Advent Madrigal Dinner will be held at the church, 701 Westminster, on Wednesday, December 5, Thursday, December 6, and Friday, December 7. Doors open at 5 p.m. with singing starting at 5:30 p.m. The sanctuary opens at 5:45 for a program that begins at 6 with the meal serving at 7. Tickets are $14 for adults and $6 for children ages nine and under. For more information or to purchase tickets, contact the church at 946-5680.
West High School's 11th Annual Elizabethan Madrigal Feaste will run over two weekends on December 8, 9, 15 and 16. The dinner and show start at 6:30 p.m. and will be held in the school's commons area. Tickets are $30 per person and may be reserved by calling 933-7570.