WESTBOROUGH – The Westborough Community Chorus will celebrate its 50th anniversary with two performances of a special show at Gibbons Middle School on Saturday, April 30 at 8 p.m. and on Sunday, May 1 at 2 p.m.
The show, “A Golden Jubilee,” will include favorite songs that members voted on from the chorus’s 50-year history. Speaking with the Community Advocate, Chorus President Lesley Drohan was excited that the group will celebrate five decades together at these performances.
“It means music and singing and the culture of creativity are alive and well in Westborough, and that there is this continuity of family that happens in this group,” said Drohan of the planned shows.
Many members said that different people in their families have joined the chorus over the years.
Drohan specifically joined in the fall of 2010 when her aunt got her involved with the chorus. Chorus CEO Beverly Remillard said that four of her family members were already in the chorus when she joined in the mid-2000s.
Remillard also described the strong friendships and connections made in the chorus, saying that they are frequently asked to sing at the funerals of chorus members.
“People come from Southborough, Sutton, Dudley, Hudson, Franklin, Framingham,” Remillard said. “They come from all over to sing.”
“Those are people we would never know if we weren’t all singing together,” she continued.
Ina Donahue was one of the original members of the chorus in 1972 when it was started by Faith Newark.
Donahue continued with the chorus for between five and six years, but had to give it up due to commitments to a church.
One of Donahue’s favorite memories from her time in the chorus was when they would sing “The Night Before Christmas” every holiday season.
“I loved that because the chorus would sit on the floor of the auditorium in front of the stage and they would act out the whole thing, complete with Santa Claus coming down through the fireplace,” Donahue said.
Remillard said “A Golden Jubilee” will feature some of the chorus’s favorite songs including “I’d Like To Teach The World To Sing,” “All That Jazz” and “Mississippi Mud,” which former chorus director Debbie Temple will return to guest direct.
Tickets for “A Golden Jubilee” will be available at the door, through the chorus website, or by calling Ellen Kluge, who can be reached at 508-485-4469.
The chorus rehearses at the Westborough Senior Center.
Those interested in getting involved can do so by reaching out through the chorus website. Tryouts are not necessary for new members.
The only thing required, Remillard said, is effort to learn music and enjoy singing.
Beyond singing, the chorus gives scholarships to Westborough students from grades seven through 12. It does a basket raffle at its spring show to raise funds for scholarships.
Over the years, these efforts have allowed the chorus to hand out over $60,000 scholarships supporting private music lessons for children.
The chorus hopes to “gear that back up” following COVID-19-era disruptions.
Learn more and purchase show tickets online at www.westborocommunitychorus.com.
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