EVENT REVIEW: The Cheshie Gala - Gawsworth Hall, Macclesfield.

For those who have are unaware of the venue for the Cheshire Gala, Gawsworth Hall, then you have to picture the surroundings. Gawsworth is a small village near Macclesfield where the historic hall is situated – which has been home to the Richards family since 1962. They have been hosting events in their garden since 1969, with a marquee erected just in front of the house where the artists perform, watched on from a large temporary grandstand which holds about 400 people. They get the view not only of the performers but also the backdrop of the impressive Tudor courtyard and rose garden – the setting is simply spectacular. 

The performers for Cheshire Gala were wide and varied but this was very much an evening of cabaret entertainment for people of all ages. The first act to take to the stage was Scarlett Quigley, a local performer hailing from the Manchester area. She was billed as singing “The Proms” but in reality she sung a mix of classical opera, musical theatre tunes and contemporary songs in her soprano tones. Quigley appeared on The Voice (the ITV talent show) in 2018 and managed to get to the second round. She spoke in quite a bit of detail about her experience on the TV programme which I’m sure for some would be interesting, but for me this was all about her voice and her choice of music. She kicked things off with “Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again” from Phantom Of The Opera and she was pitch and tone perfect – this was the song she used in her audition for The Voice. She continued with songs like “I Dreamed A Dream” from Les Miserables but then mixed things up with contemporary songs like “Diamonds Are Forever”. However, my personal favorites were the classic opera she sung like “O Mio Babbino Caro” which in this setting was just about perfect. An excellent performance from a young soprano with considerable talent. 

The next act to take to the stage were The Bootleg Bee Gees, unsurprisingly a Bee Gees tribute act. They are all from the London area. If I am completely honest the band didn’t look much like the original Bee Gees, with the exception of their sparkly jackets, and they had only a passing resemblance to them vocally. However, this did not matter for a single minute as they blasted through the Bee Gees back catalogue and created an atmosphere of fun and frivolity that the packed audience absolutely loved – many of them were on the lawn in front of the stage dancing. The Bootleg Bee Gees did a complete set of both Bee Gee tracks such as “Massachusetts”, “Words”, “Jive Talking”, “Night Fever”, “Staying Alive” and “Tragedy” – as well as some of the Bee Gees songs that were made famous by others like “Islands In The Stream” and “Grease”. What’s not to like when you have the audience singing and dancing along to classic songs like those – great fun and most definitely entertaining. 

The third act on stage was Tamika Jackson as Diana Ross – walking to the stage in full Diana Ross dress in what was by now some light rain. Jackson is most definitely a born performer, she was immediately interacting with the audience and getting them in the mood for some classic Diana Ross material – including her early work in The Supremes. She belted out songs like “Chain Reaction”, “Stop In The Name Of Love”, “Baby Love” and “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough”. Tamika Jackson has a stunning voice and has all of the mannerisms and charm of Diana Ross herself – again her set was without doubt very entertaining and had the audience up dancing on the lawn. 

Our final act is known as Ultimate Elton – an Elton John tribute. Ultimate Elton is Paul Bacon and he arrived on stage dressed in full Elton John attire (modern day Elton), including sunglasses, wig and platform boots. He most definitely ticked the box for looking like Elton John. Bacon sat down at the piano on stage and set about a very full set of songs from Elton’s back catalogue, including “I’m Still Standing”, “The Bitch Is Back”, “Crocodile Rock”, “Saturday Night” and “Your Song”. Each song performed by Bacon was very much in Elton John’s style – the mannerisms at the piano, the voice, the way he carried himself, simply everything. The show’s organiser described Paul Bacon as the premier Elton John tribute act around and I could not have agreed more. 

Overall, the Cheshire Gala was fabulous entertainment and it was in a stunning setting – it is hard to imagine a better place for this to be hosted and I hope to see the same format year after year.

Reviewer - John Fish
on - 18/8/19