CRESTVIEW — Nearly 90 members of the 130-voice Crestview High School chorus will travel to Orlando after Christmas and perform at the Disney Epcot resort and at Universal Studios, but they’ll need some cash to get there.
To help, the Crestview High School chorus presents its annual Christmas concert 7 p.m. Dec. 13 at the school’s Pearl Tyner Auditorium. A $5 admission benefits the chorus’ travel fund.
Adding a little spice — notably, “Cinnamon, cinnamon, don’t forget the cinnamon” — to the Crestview Area Chamber of Commerce December breakfast, the Crestview High School Chanticleer, Destiny and Chorale choirs performed a mini concert previewing the Dec. 13 concert.
Among the songs performed was the humorous “Fruitcake.” With its mock-serious trolling of ingredients and preparation methods, and choruses that devolved into near-slapstick, the piece was a crowd-pleaser.
Crestview High’s choral music director Kevin Lusk thanked the business community for its continued support over the years. Because of local supporters, the program’s students have performed and received educational experiences in New York, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., London and Toronto, he said.
“We couldn’t give these kids these opportunities if it wasn’t for your support,” Lusk said to business owners. “For many of them, it is their first time out of Florida, and for some, it’s their first time outside of Crestview.”
First National Bank of Crestview, which turns its presentation time over to students who display their vocal talents, sponsors the chorus’s annual performance at the December breakfast.
“We are so excited to do this every year to show off the Crestview High School chorus,” bank President Dale Rice said. “We like to give back to our community.”
“Every year it just gets better,” bank Vice President Pennie Hartzog said after sustained applause died off following the last number, a spirited version of the 18th-century French Christmas carol “Patapan.”
At the December 2013 chamber of commerce breakfast, the singing students will likely be in Renaissance garb for a preview of the chorus’ Madrigal Dinner, an evening of musical performance and theatre accompanied by a multi-course dinner the culinary arts student prepare, Lusk said.
WANT TO GO? The Crestview High School chorus presents its annual Christmas concert 7 p.m. Dec. 13 at the school’s Pearl Tyner Auditorium. A $5 admission benefits the chorus’ travel fund.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: CHS chorus presents concert preview during business breakfast