It was just after 7pm on Saturday 13^th October when the lights dimmed in the auditorium of the Frank Collymore Hall.  Expectations of an evening of fine entertainment rippled through the audience, and they were not to be disappointed.  From the first few bars of the theme song for the evening, “The Days of Wine and Roses”, played on the electronic keyboards by Phyllis Clarke, until the final reprise of the same song, sung by the entire cast and audience in unison nearly three hours later, the audience were delighted by a wide variety of performances given by nearly 100 BARP members.

After a short tableau illustrating the theme of the night, the stage was filled by the sight and sounds of the BARP Chorale.  Under the leadership of Michael Gill, with David Corbin at the piano, the always harmonious and alternately sweet and powerful voices of its 40 members filled the hall with a Hoagy Carmichael medley. Next up was the oldest member of the cast, 93 year old Joseph Graham, who drew gales of laughter with his hilarious bout of ‘speechifying’ and then expertly changed the pace with a rousing rendition of, “And now our Father” on the harmonica. 

An appreciation of classical music followed with Enid Gay giving the first of two fine operatic performances of the evening and Glyne Bryan charming the audience with the sweet sounds of his flute, also the first of two such appearances in the show.  John Bryan and Harrison Williams were their accompanists.

Another change of pace with Margaret Williams’ heartfelt rendition of the Cecil Archer poem, “I Always Did the Giving” brought both laughter and a sense of recognition, especially from the female members of the audience.  Leroy Straker then took to the stage with his guitar and performed, “Song of my Land” a self-composed, tuneful and well observed song about Barbados, followed by the Jim Reeves hit, “Across the Bridge”, with the audience accepting his invitation to join in the choruses.

After Vilma Scantlebury’s delightful interpretation of the poem, “Limbo Dancer” and then Shirley Husband’s melodious rendition of “Lamb of God” accompanied by Michael Gill at the piano, it was the turn of Maizie Barker Welch to draw gasps from the crowd, not just for her outstanding performance of Scott Joplin’s, “Maple Leaf Rag” on the grand piano, but also for the sparkling outfit she had chosen for the occasion. Neville Murrell’s charming version of “Mona Lisa” and “If I Give my Heart to You” was then followed by the show-stopping Golden Stars of Genesis.  The beat of contemporary music filled the Frank Collymore Hall and the colourful outfits of the twelve members of this specially formed BARP Line Dancing Team were a joy to behold.  As they strutted their stuff, the audience simply went wild and it went without saying that they would be called back for an encore.

If the audience thought it couldn’t get any better after the intermission, they were in for a treat. Master of Ceremonies for the evening so far had been the ever entertaining and inimitable Patrick Gollop.  But at this point, he handed over to Grace Pilgrim to introduce, “The BARP Girls”, who brought the house down with their hilarious ‘fashion show’ depicting the evolution of various clothing styles through the decades. 

A tough act to follow, but Cynthia Pollard rose to the occasion with her impassioned delivery of the heartfelt poem, “Drinking from my Saucer”.  Yet another dramatic piece followed the second helping of classical sounds from Enid Gay and Glyne Bryan.  “Still I Rise” by Maya Angelou, was brought to life by Lauretta Hackett, who gave a commanding performance of this powerful poem. The grand piano made its entrance once again and this time, it was Tessa Kerr who captivated the audience with a perfect blend of musical pieces which not only created a memorable medley, but also highlighted her outstanding talents at the keyboard.

Just when the audience were wondering what other surprises producers Kathleen Drayton and Margaret Williams could possibly have up their theatrical sleeves, the lithe and slender figures of Ken Farrell and Montege Dean-Bowen took the stage, dressed in readiness to thrill the hall with their stunning display of the Tango, Cha Cha, Samba and Jive. As Lionel Clarke brought the evening to a close with his rendition of Blue Moon, the entire cast joined him on stage for a singalong with the audience of the title theme, “The Days of Wine and Roses”. 

Over one hundred members of the Barbados Association of Retired Persons had given freely of their time and talents to ensure that they provided an entertaining and memorable evening to the packed auditorium.  Suffice to say that they succeeded.