The Messiah is coming
I have never seen so many sweaty choirboys and choirgirls in one place. We are in the school hall of the Bishop Anstey High School which is adjacent to the spanking new $518 million National Academy for the Performing Arts in Port of Spain. It is a hot Sunday afternoon. The hall is closed-off, there are large glass panels that let in light but not air; the main air-conditioning unit is not working. There are only a few fans. Pat Bishop has a rusty cowbell she uses to call everybody to attention. "Allyuh could stand up now," she says, ready to take the Lydians through another section of Handel's Messiah in preparation for their upcoming series of concerts this week at Queen's Hall. Bishop, acting urgently given the fact that the opening show is a few days away on Thursday night, speaks like a cross between a school-teacher and an army commander. She suddenly realizes that she’s made a mistake; the section she wants sung does not require the choir to stand. "All...