St Albans theatre company OVO staging Ukraine benefit 'To Be' at Maltings Theatre

'To Be' will be held at the Maltings Theatre in St Albans on Thursday, March 31 at 8pm.

“The question for us now is to be or not to be."

Inspired by the words of Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the UK Parliament, OVO is presenting an evening of music, song and spoken word.

Organised by OVO associate director Janet Podd and David Widdowson, chair of the Board of Trustees of OVO, performers and theatre staff will be donating their time to the cause and all ticket receipts and bar profits will be sent to the Disasters Emergency Committee.

The programme for ‘To Be’ features music and poetry by the likes of Shakespeare, Shelley, George Gershwin, WB Yeats, Simon and Garfunkel, Nina Simone, Emily Dickinson, JB Priestley, Bob Dylan, Birdy, Kacey Musgraves and more.

Some of the participants in OVO’s ‘TO BE’ evening. Top (L to R): Emilia Harrild and Anna Franklin. Middle: Lyle Fulton. Bottom (L to R): Annette Holland and Jane Withers. (Image: OVO)

Performers include Emma Durkin, Anna Franklin, Lyle Fulton, Emilia Harrild, Annette Holland, Adam Nichols, David Podd, David Widdowson, Liz Widdowson, Jane Withers, and Alison Wright.

OVO artistic director Adam Nichols said: "We wanted to do something, however small, to try and help, and as actors and musicians we thought the best way was to pool our performance skills to try and raise some money for the Disasters Emergency Committee.

"We've tried to choose songs and readings on themes of hope, friendship and solidarity, and we have some beautiful Ukrainian music and poetry, too.

"Our programme ranges from Shakespeare and Shelley to Gershwin, Bob Dylan and Nina Simone, and we hope it will be an uplifting evening for anyone kind enough to support us."

Tickets are priced at £15. Visit https://ovo.org.uk/big-shows/To-Be