It’s a Wrap for Withington Girls’ School
Everyone is getting used to things being different at the moment, but Withington Girls’ School is making absolutely sure that the very special things in the life of the school still happen.
Top of that list is Christmas, and Director of Music, Mrs Gilly Sargent, has ensured that the whole community can enjoy all the traditional music performances, even though the school community and its various Christmas audiences will not be able to gather together as usual.
So, in the days before October half term, Withington’s auditorium was transformed into Santa’s grotto. Lights twinkled and Christmas music rang through the school as pupils dressed in Christmassy costumes were filmed performing a repertoire of carols, songs and music. It was a joyful triumph of logistics as year groups were filmed separately among festively festooned screens and PPE.
The performances will be combined into a set of videos to be played back for the school’s time-honored programme of seasonal concerts, including special recordings for Withington’s longstanding traditions of Carols at St Ann’s Church in aid of the Wood Street Mission and of giving a concert and party for local senior citizens. Christmas music videos will be given to local care homes and community centres along with an individual Christmas goody box for each of the guests who would normally have come to Withington to enjoy the sing-along concert and tea party in person.
Headmistress Mrs Sarah Haslam said: “It certainly made me smile when I walked through the corridors to the strains of ‘It’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas’ coming from the Arts Centre! We are determined that the show will go on and I would like to thank all of our wonderful musicians who will bring pleasure to many over the next couple of months with their special recordings for our Christmas audiences.”
