An Unforgettable Evening
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Last Saturday brought in a distinguished gathering that constituted a ‘full house’ to the Banquet Hall of the BMICH for a grand Sing-A-Long cum Sundown Dance which was, in effect, a fund raiser for the welfare of underprivileged cancer patients. The atmosphere was extraordinary. The evening began with Vijaya Corea, the charismatic Compere, coming on stage to speak a few revealing words about the prevailing needs of cancer patients.
Following the opening remarks, it was time to strike up the band to Sing-a-Long and to their credit, ‘Nalin and Star Combination’ responded warmly to the desires of the audience who were given the opportunity to call out their favourite numbers from an elegant Song Book. Moreover, there was a panel of judges who were moving around to pick the better Singing Tables where, ultimately, three tables had the opportunity to come up front and compete for an attractive prize. Compere, Vijaya Corea, was on his toes, ensuring that there was never a dull moment, filling the gaps and not leaving a lacuna with his rib-tickling humour. The success of the evening was spelt out by the fact that there was always something happening all the time.
Ten prizes went the way of several lucky winners via the Entrance Ticket Draw while the Business Cards Draw also saw many smiling lucky ones walking away delighted. The night grew older with the air being filled with beautiful music from the bandstand which emanated from a vintage that threw up perennial favourites and evergreens. This resulted in maximum audience participation.
The second half of the evening took another turn for the better – the singing gave way to dancing! There was a spontaneous inflow onto the dance floor. People were so at ease as they swung their hips and threw up their hands to the lilt and beat of the excellent music dished out by Nalin and The Star Combination that was a hallmark of the evening. Then came guest star, Annesley Malawana to entertain the crowd to the Sinhala pop hits of the 70s which, again, brought still more on to the dance floor. The natural sequence was the conduct of the Baila Competition, which saw the suave performance of the winners and runners-up qualifying themselves for prizes.