A NIGHT of the Proms will raise money for good causes in Rugby next month.
The Rugby Philharmonic Choir and the Jaguar Land Rover Band will perform to an audience of 600 at the Gala Proms Charity Concert.
The concert will include music by John Rutter, Bob Chilcott, Stephen Sondheim and Cole Porter, and will conclude with a Last Night of the Proms sing-along finale.
Half of the proceeds will be donated to the Friends of St Cross, with the remainder to be distributed among local charities supported by the Rotary Club of Rugby Dunsmore – including armed forces charity SSAFA, one of Mayor Tom Mahoney’s chosen charities for his year in office.
Friends chairman Willy Goldschmidt said: “This will be the third Gala Concert we have promoted in partnership with the Rotary Club and we are confident the concert will be another sell out success, so would encourage all our supporters to buy their tickets soon.
“We expect to raise the roof with a fantastic evening of entertainment and hope to raise a similar amount to the £8,000 achieved for our two charities in 2017.
“We are grateful to Lime Tree Retirement Village for their sponsorship of the concert which has underwritten the costs of arranging the event.”
The Rotary club’s fund-raising chairman Mike Folly said: “The Rugby Philharmonic Choir has a tremendous reputation, and the Jaguar Land Rover Band is acknowledged as world-class.
“This will be a fantastic evening of top class music for all tastes. There is nothing like the sound of over 100 singers and this amazing band to uplift an audience in this wonderful venue.”
Members of Rugby Philharmonic Choir and the JLR Band were invited to meet in the Mayor’s Parlour to announce the concert.
Choir musical director Mervyn Bethell said: “We are delighted to have been invited to team up with the JLR Band and support such great local fundraising organisations as the Friends of St Cross and Rugby Dunsmore Rotary Club.”
JLR band manager Simon Archer said: “The Band had a great time when we came to Rugby in 2017 and are looking forward to raising the roof again in February.”
The concert takes place at 7pm in Rugby School’s Temple Speech Room on Saturday February 23.
Visit www.fsx.org.uk for tickets (£12.50 in advance), or go to the Rugby Visitor Centre or the Tea Bar in the outpatients department at St Cross Hospital.
