Happy New Year! I think we’re still in the socially-acceptable timeframe to say that, given that this is our first rehearsal of 2026.
June feels so very far away, but at KTB Music it might as well be next week, and we have work to do. We spent this evening getting a little more comfortable with some of our set list for the big family-friendly KTB Music Theatre Chorus concert. It will be the first time we’ve done a matinee, and- no, wait, I’m getting way ahead. Park those thoughts in drafts for another week or so. (It’s exciting, though.)
It seemed very fitting that we kicked off 2026 with “Oh Happy Day” from Sister Act 2. Brand new for this year, and what a feeling it is to hit a great sound on our first song of the year. We hope we will do those nuns proud when we get this one perfected! Up next: “Without Love” (Hairspray) always gets me randomly singing the “doot doot doo…” part for days afterwards… and it seems that we’re all a bunch of shower singers. Not that anyone is likely to be surprised by that. My neighbours certainly wouldn’t be.
Moving swiftly onwards to another new one: “Come Alive” from The Greatest Showman is going to be an ‘audience dancing in their seats’ moment – I can just feel it. We had a lot of discussion this evening about how it’s nearly impossible to sing many songs without moving to the beat, and this is definitely one of those numbers.
And finally, it’s a moment altos everywhere have been waiting for. We have an arrangement of “Happy” (Pharrell Williams’ this-song-was-everywhere track from the Despicable Me 2 soundtrack) that gives the alto section full focus and the actual melody during that inescapably catchy chorus. There may have been some cheering from that side of the room.
It’s so great to be back. In some ways, it felt like we’d never been away, and in others… let’s just say KTB has a diplomatic way to say “let’s try that again”. Sorry, Katy. It’s soooo hard to get singing practice in when there’s always chocolate in the way.
Do you have any special goals for this year, dear reader? If you’re a singer and musical theatre enthusiast with “join a choir” on your list, now is an excellent time to join us here at KTB Music Theatre Chorus. For more information, just send us a note using the contact information on this site.
… I just saw what I accidentally did on that last line. Eh, it can stay there. What’s musical theatre without a little cheesiness every so often? Welcome to the next year of this blog!
Written by Aeryn Isherwood