All Sold Out

Our plan to go and see BATS 25th Showstoppers production tonight almost fell at the first hurdle when I saw on social media that it was sold out! That’ll teach me to leave things until the last minute and not book tickets in advance. Luckily, they said they could probably squeeze a couple of seats in at the back for us - there have to be some perks to having been a member for over 30 years!
But, as it happened, we ended up with the best seats in the house! A block of seats on the front row had been given away as a raffle prize but, with one minute to go, nobody had turned up to claim them. Rather than have the cast looking at empty seats on the front row, we were told we could sit there. We didn’t need telling twice.
And what a superb show it was. A very talented cast treated us to songs and dances from a whole variety of shows. From Six to Sound of Music, from Chicago to Chess, all expertly staged and sung. The final number was “Oom-Pah- Pah” from Oliver! with all the cast on stage and the audience encouraged to join in at the top of our voices.
Hard to believe that BATS have been doing this for 25 years. What started as one night of music, with comic interludes, has evolved into four nights of spectacular excerpts from a wide variety of West End and Broadway shows. I went from doing the comedy bits, to being part of the ensemble, to working backstage as the show became more music focused - I don’t sing or dance, well, not in public anyway. The last few years, I have only attended as an audience member because of other commitments.
So, here’s to the next 25 years of BATS Showstoppers. And maybe - just maybe - I may be able to get involved again at some point in the future…