There was a brief moment last year when I considered auditioning for Cambridge University Show Choir. After sitting in on a rehearsal for their upcoming show, To Glee or Not to Glee, my initial feelings from that time have been confirmed. Firstly, that show choir seems to be one of the most genuinely fun and joyous activities out there. Secondly, that it requires a level of skill and talent that I absolutely do not possess.

“An influx of freshers has invigorated the choir and provided a lot of new talent”

And it seems that this year the CU Show Choir might have more of those things than ever before. Musical director Lucy Twittey tells me before the rehearsal that there are no fewer than eleven new recruits amongst their ranks, who make up the majority of the choir. An influx of freshers has invigorated the choir and provided a lot of new talent. Producer Evan Richards explains that they have managed to catch a lot of them before they are sucked into the CUMTS bubble – and while they are still energetic and flexible enough to juggle the choir’s biweekly three hour rehearsals with other commitments, including freshers’ plays. Lucy describes a magical moment when she heard this newly assembled choir sing one of the songs from their setlist – Keane’s ‘Somewhere Only We Know’ – and the harmonies were on point. ‘I could actually hear the altos! ’ she laughs gleefully (pun intended). I ask ‘so this year is the year then?’ and both of them agree wholeheartedly. As a fourth year, this is Evan’s last one, and he is determined to go out strong. Lucy tells me that the goal is to make it to Nationals in Cardiff – or rather, initially she tells me that they are making it to Nationals.

I didn’t doubt her in the moment, but as I watch the choir rehearse, I see (and hear) that her confidence is well-founded. I have been warned that this is a ‘revision’ – essentially a dress rehearsal for the dress rehearsal - and that some things are likely to still be quite rough. However, as I watch the choir launch into ‘Say a Little Prayer’, the word that springs to mind is smooth. Most importantly, they look and sound cohesive, like a properly in-sync unit. This must have a lot to do with the personal relationships in the choir. Evan tells me that the atmosphere in the rehearsal room is excellent, and Lucy describes the choir as ‘like a friend group’, and I see exactly what they mean. As Lucy calls out cheerful greetings to every choir member who arrives, they each look genuinely happy to be there. It does just feel like friends arriving at the hangout.

“They barely stop to catch breath between songs, and the energy is absolutely infectious”

As Lucy insists that I join in with their physical warm-up (a dance circle), I get caught up in a feeling that I absolutely love. It’s exactly like the uninhibited feeling of dancing with your friends at a sleepover, just for the sheer fun of it. This is the taste of the show choir life that I have been craving since last year. There is an undeniable touch of stress associated with having to spontaneously come up with a dance move for everyone to copy, but I vaguely wave my arms, and everyone cheerfully goes along with it. They then charge through the entire set list, barely stopping to catch breath between songs, and the energy is absolutely infectious. The real smiles that beam out at me throughout are heartwarming. Even when things go wrong (not very often), there is laughter. I feel the urge to clap after every number, and find myself doing so. The choreography looks slick, and some of the vocals are strikingly impressive (I’m talking chills … and yes, you can hear the altos).

The set list is everything you could hope for from a Glee theme – a combination of the very best tunes from the show, and some songs that everyone would absolutely agree spiritually belong there: the Barbie melody is particularly inspired. All I can say is I think they have really mastered the art of giving the people what they want. Lucy says her unofficial show choir manifesto is ‘make it more Glee’ – and she has definitely delivered.

Then it is time for them to go through fixes for individual songs, and there is a sobering reminder of just how technical this kind of performance is. It takes a lot of hard work as well as prowess to look effortless on stage. The illusion is of a spontaneous, joyful outburst of song and dance (like at a sleepover) but there is naturally a lot more to it. It takes painstaking practice, and a lot of clicking, counting, metronome ticks, pointing, pushing, ushering and calling instructions over the music to orchestrate this illusion.

Yet everyone seems more than happy to undergo this process. The sense of joy always prevails. I too walked out of the rehearsal room feeling a bit better about the world. I now feel a similar way about show choir as I do about musicals (when they’re done well) – if you don’t like them, then you don’t really like joy. So, contemplate that, and definitely get yourself to a performance of To Glee or Not to Glee. I really think it can fix something in all of us.

To Glee or Not to Glee will be showing on Thursday 5th and Friday 6th December at 11pm at the ADC Theatre