Elizabeth Doney Havre Daily News edoney@havredailynews.com
Scandinavian flavor is the spice of weekend at the annual show of the Bullhook Bottoms Barbershop Chorus in the high school auditoriums of Chinook and Havre on Friday and Saturday evenings. Sixteen members and a couple of narrators, Mike Zook and Frank Payne, will perform the musical comedy play, “Romance yeah sure, you betcha,” written by longtime chorus member, Leo Beardsley. “The show will move right into a local script with an anticipated hour and half of fun family entertainment,” Beardsley said. “With a story line that the narrators follow and 10 musical numbers that fit right into the story, this mix of music is a combination of old time barbershop and some modern music as well. We even have some barbershop doo-wop!” The chorus is also anticipating a high school quartet to come in from out of town to open the show, which has been very well received in the past 17 years since it’s inception. A culmination of the National Boys & Girls Club Week, the organization has been involved in youth programs for decades. “Our chorus has been involved in replacing the stage curtains at the high school and helping to replace bleachers at the fairgrounds,” Beardsley said. “This year we have chosen to try to get something done to help out the Boys & Girls Club.” The chorus has been preparing for their shows by singing at the Atrium this past weekend and making a special appearance at the Boys & Girls Club of the Hi-Line carnival Monday, where they hosted a game. Chorus practice is every Thursday night at 7:30 at Van Orsdel United Methodist Church located on Fifth Avenue. “We are always recruiting members we should have a chorus in Havre twice this size,” Beardsley said. “It’s so much fun and we bring so many smiles to so many people. There are so many guys out there that like to sing, and this is something great that they can be a part of. “The Boys & Girls Club is promoting the barbershop show as fun exposure for kids for a music style that they possibly have never heard before and also to see people from the community in a different context,” Laura Holmlund of the Boys &Girls Club said. “We strongly support the arts by teaching dance, music, guitar lessons. At our talent shows singing is always very popular and karaoke is very popular regular activity at the club. The Barbershop Chorus show will expose children to another way to enjoy singing.” Admission is $8, children ages 5-12 is $3, children ages birth through 5 are free and Boys & Girls Club members accompanied by an adult who present their membership card will be admitted free. For more information, call Beardsley at 265-2901.
