The Woodley Festival of Music and Arts returns later this month. Over the past 52 years the Woodley Festival, which is an annual event, has provided a platform for young people to develop their talents in a supportive and encouraging environment. It also provides an opportunity for performers to gain valuable experience and receive feedback from professional adjudicators. Entry to the festival normally opens in October for the choir and November for all other classes and closes in mid-January. Following the deadline of entries into the festival, the committee is delighted to see many new and returnee entrants for the 2023 edition.
This year the Woodley Festival will see a variety of choir, instrumental, pianoforte, vocal and speech & drama classes over three weekends in March ending with a gala finale concert in which a number of performers will have the honour of being invited back to perform. The well-supported choir classes are always very popular with the audience as the ensemble group find their voices. Open classes for amateur adult performers are also well attended. Parents, relatives, and friends of entrants as well as the public are invited to attend to provide support and to be entertained.
The choir classes will take place on the March 4 and 5 at Emmbrook School in Wokingham. The instrumental (March 4 and 5), pianoforte (March 10 (evening), March 11, 12 and 17 (evening) and March 18), vocal (March 17 (evening), March 18 and 19), speech & drama (March 11 and 12) classes will take place at the Oakwood Centre in Woodley. The gala finale concert on March 26 will take place in the new Michael Malnick Center within the beautiful grounds of Leighton Park School.
One of the main benefits of the festival is the chance the entrants get to perform to a small, friendly audience. This serves to boost self-esteem and confidence in young children. Madelaine Fisher was one child that benefitted hugely from her participation in the festival. Maddie, who suffers from dyslexia, struggled with reading, working memory and processing skills – consequently she lacked confidence. Her early efforts in verse and prose classes provoked some very positive remarks from the adjudicator and Maddie was sufficiently encouraged to return each year for the next six years. She won many gold and silver medals in the speech and drama section. Maddie’s mother Fiona said: “Undoubtedly Woodley Festival has boosted Maddie’s confidence in public, helping to build her character and assisted in overcoming her inherent difficulties.”
The festival also provides important performance practice for musicians, many of whom have gone on to success on a bigger stage. Reading oboist Ewan Millar, winner of the woodwind category final in the 2020 version of BBC Young Musician competition, took part in the instrumental section at Woodley from a very young age.
Woodley Festival has been very fortunate to have a sponsor for the past 18 years. Local businesswoman Ann Manning, managing director of ManningUK Insurance Brokers was once described as a ‘fairy godmother’ at an opening of the festival. In 2005 Ann was asked by a friend to help on the entrance door as the festival was short of helpers. She came along and during her day sat in on a speech and drama class and was in awe of the amazing talent of those that enter both young and not so young. Upon hearing that the festival was in danger of closure due to lack of funding Ann had no hesitation in stepping in to enable the festival to not only continue but also to grow. Ann is passionate about the festival and sees it as a platform for children and young adults to thrive.
Please visit the webpage at https://woodleyfestival.org.uk for the dates and timetable of the classes and the day tickets for the classes can be purchased at the Woodley Festival reception desk. Follow them at Twitter (https://twitter.com/woodleyfestival) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/woodleyfestival/)
https://www.facebook.com/woodleyfestival
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