Sir,
Mr. Tooth's letter about the Peter Karrie evening at the De Valence a fortnight ago has inspired me to write.
The disorganisation of the evening was a 'minor evil' to me compared with the almost-painful loudness of the sound when Peter Karrie was singing. Mr. Karrie has a powerful voice and does not need such a level of amplification. The loudness marred the evening for me.
Speaking to other audience members during the interval, I found that they agreed with me on this subject. The volume detracted from hearing properly some of the attractive melodies from the shows that Mr. Karrie was singing.
During the course of the evening - and it lasted nearly four hours, including queueing to get in - I could appreciate only two of the numbers Mr. Karrie sang as he sang them more softly. When he did this, I was able to appreciate his voice.
Perhaps this message could be passed on to Mr. Karrie, as Mr. Tooth's was, so that future audiences for Mr. Karrie's shows can benefit. I gather that this would be an issue for his production team since it was their sound system.
The evening was not, however, an entire disaster since it was forcibly demonstrated what wonderful homegrown talent we have here in Pembrokeshire. None of the local singers - groups or individuals - sang too loudly. Indeed, the contribution of these amateurs struck me as being almost professional. Clive Raymond, the musical director of Saundersfoot Footlights, was superb on the keyboard, accompanying Mr. Karrie. Other members of the Footlights sang well, as did Haverfordwest Operatic Society whose numbers included a delightfully performed selection from 'Les Miserables'. The children of the De Valence Youth Theatre were enchanting, especially the two soloists. And the young lady named Tracy, who won the auditions in Tenby, sang 'Don't Cry For Me Argentina' with a maturity and stage presence that belied her mere 14 years of age.
I think it is a good thing Mr. Karrie is doing to involve local amateurs in his shows.
I have never seen the De Valence so well attended; although there are lessons to be learned from some of the problems encountered during the Peter Karrie night, the De Valence committee deserves the townspeople's support at forthcoming events as the committee is trying so hard to please potential audiences and eventually, with a good customer base that could attract some funding, to create a 'proper' arts centre at the De Valence. Surely such an endeavour is something many residents would approve of for Tenby.
Anne-Ruth Alton, Tenby.