Chapter 16
In their spare moments, Willow and Vivienne had worked out what songs they wanted and made a rough calculation of how many would fit between the guests. They had timed the guest’s sets, so had some idea of how long the show would last.
On Monday, Sebastian had the most star-studded passengers he had ever driven as he picked them up at the Britannia and took them to the school. He was interested to see what Willow had put together this time. There were several cars there when he arrived, and Garry came out to welcome everyone.
The orchestra were setting up on stage, with Garry joining the other band members. Willow waited and then called out.
“Thank you all for coming today. We will be working through the show up to the end of Zara’s set. Then we can work on the finale. The score is on your stands. Rocks, you’ve worked with these friends before, so you know what bits of guitar work fits. With everything else, add something as you see fit and remember it for later. Tomorrow, hopefully, we can work through the entire show. We have three months before the charity show, but I’ve been there and got caught before. Tomorrow we’ll have a small audience. Who knows what we’ll be doing between now and the end of June.”
Moyra led the orchestra in tuning up. Willow and Vivienne walked onto the stage with Howard and led him to the rostrum. Willow went to the piano and started to doodle the intro to ‘Finding a Friend’ while Vivienne spoke to an imaginary audience. The orchestra was brought into the song, and they were off and running. They alternated Willow and Viv’s songs and then brought out Lee to sing four of his better-known songs that weren’t Phantom related. After that, it was four from VivWillow, then four from Ken, another four from VivWillow and then four from Cliff. All the time, the guitar was being added, proving that the band remembered the recording sessions. After Cliff, the pair did two duets before calling on Mac. Another duet and then they called on Zara to join them.
At the end of her set, Willow called all the singers onto the stage.
“Now we get to the neutral zone. We’ll be finishing with a set from the ‘Phantom of the Opera.’ You four guys should now be kitted out in the white-tie getup. At the show, Zara will be wearing white, and Viv has gone off and changed into something similar. When Zara is taking her applause, Viv comes onto the stage and they sing the duet, ‘Wishing you were here for me’. The orchestra goes straight into the tune for ‘Music of the Night’, and they sing the first couple of stanzas alternatively. Then, one of you guys strides in with the song, going up to Zara, who has moved to one side of the stage. Another one of you come in from the other side to sing the next bit with Viv, followed by the other two, leaving two groups of three on the stage. As that song ends, I let rip with the theme song on the organ, joined by the orchestra. We bash it senseless for a few bars, and then you phantoms sing the main song, rising to a crescendo with all six voices. When you sing ‘We Are The Phantoms’ we cut it suddenly and the lights go out.”
She handed out the lyrics sheets.
“We can do this a few times today and get it right. Tomorrow, we’ll have all the costumes ready for a full-dress rehearsal. If we mess it up, we have Wednesday, but I would hate to take up too much of the holiday. Tomorrow, we’ll also have the backdrop projections and final smoke, but no pyrotechnics. That’s saved for the outside.”
They took four runs through the finale before getting it right, seeing that it ended up as one, long, song, and made a couple of changes on the way. Then Willow got them to run through Zara’s set and into the finale before she was happy.
“Thank you all for your work today. Orchestra, all blue tomorrow if you can, I have a full set of outfits on hangers in the locker rooms. Try the one with your name and let me know if there’s a problem.”
The stage emptied and Willow stood there with Garry’s arms around her. Howard Bamborough got off his rostrum and stood beside them, watching the mingled orchestra and stars leave the theatre.
“When we set you that task, back at the beginning of the first term, we were just thinking about something that would be good in this theatre, not realising how weak it was if out in a stadium. As usual, you’ve pulled our irons out of the fire. I was excited as I conducted, and that’s not usual. I’ll be telling the Head to round up a good audience for you tomorrow. By the way, my timing was that it goes three and a half hours, so an ideal show length.”
“Thank you, sir. Today would have been another month into the future if it hadn’t been for Garry being able to connect with the others.”
“What time shall I tell the Head?”
“If we do a full performance in the morning, tell her that we’ll start at two. I’ll organise a food truck outside for lunch.”
As they left the theatre, Mac called over to them.
“Garry and Willow! Come back to the hotel with us for lunch. You deserve some food after directing that!”
Willow got into Garry’s car, and they followed the coach to the Britannia. There, he left it with a valet, and they went into the hotel, following the others to the dining room. They had Vivienne with them, as well as Moyra and a few senior members of the orchestra. Willow joined the other girls in the toilets to relieve themselves and freshen up the make-up. Zara was effusive in her praise for the finale, and Moyra was just thankful to be part of the whole show.
They had a good lunch and there was a hubbub of talk. Mac came over to Willow and Garry and pulled them to some isolated seats.
“Look, lass. While I was singing my set, I could hear organ work inside the band.”
“I’m sorry, Mac. It’s a natural response, from my earliest days when I played along with Garry and the other bands. I won’t do it again.”
“Yes, you bloody will. It made things sound better. We’ve never had more than our core group on stage, it’s been almost an unwritten rule from before I joined the band. Nothing like this, with a full orchestra. We’re in final discussions with a tour of the USA during summer. It doesn’t start until the third week of July, to allow their college kids to attend midweek shows, and will end on the last Saturday of September. It’s ten weeks on the road, with just a few days off. Will you join us?”
“Me!!! You want me on the stage with Toxic Rocks. That would be brilliant! We could have a Las Vegas marriage, Garry, with Elvis as the preacher.”
“I’ll take that as, yes?”
“You bet! It’s back to my roots with hard rock”
“It also allows us to rip off some of your hits, some of the ones that you wrote are crying out for a Toxic shock. Look. Say nothing at the moment. After you’ve done this show, I’ll get our manager to have a word with yours. If you’ve told him that you’re going to retire for a few years, he may be happy to sell you. That will put you under our umbrella, with all the benefits that comes with it. Of course, once you’re with us, we’ll be using you and Garry as our artistic directors for the tour. What you’ve pulled together with this show has been amazing, and I’ve watched that DVD of you in the club. Six hours of flawless entertainment with just two of you was a masterclass in arranging. Garry has told me the term dates, and I’ve got us booked into your studio next week to record our next album. How about Garry bringing you along and we’ll make it a five-piece band to see how it works.”
She gave him a hug.
“See you next week, boss. I have the studio booked the Saturday after, to record our last VivWillow album with this orchestra. It’s all new material, more soft rock. It will fulfill my commitment to the Head, and there will be the two albums on the market before the show, using both the Juniors and the Seniors. My gift to them before I leave.”
“What then?”
“A three-year Bachelor of Business Administration through the University of London, the Royal Holloway campus.”
“Clever girl. When will that start?”
“November.”
Garry took her home and came back in the morning to take her back to the school. She had a shimmering dark blue dress to wear. That morning, they looked the part, and the Rocks were well hidden within the orchestra. The tech boys had put up the screen across the back of the stage and were projecting pictures that reflected the songs. They took it very seriously and worked through the entire show before lunch, with Mac and the other guys resplendent in the white-tie outfits in the finale. The smoke was cold about her feet, but she expected that it did what it was meant to. There was a last change, which Lee had suggested, and it worked so well, they liked it.
The guys changed back into their set outfits and Vivienne changed back to the yellow dress that she did the rest of the show in. The food truck was outside the door, and they all stopped for lunch. When they had tidied up, freshened up and took their places, the auditorium was about half-full.
Willow could see the Head and most of the school board; most of the main teachers; the Bishop and his group, including Tom, Sally, and the three Russells. The group from the Coventry Football Club was expected. What she didn’t expect was some that she recognised from the last charity tour. As the orchestra was getting seated, she went down to talk to Bruce.
“How are you, today, Mister Ace Reporter?”
“Wondering what’s going on. The Head rang me and told me that there was something that I might like to be ahead of the game on. If it includes you, I’m looking forward to it.”
“This is a show that we’ve put together for the football club, on the last full weekend in June. It started out as me and Vivienne. We did perform that show with the Junior Orchestra before Christmas. This showcases the Seniors. I’d better get back, we’re nearly ready.”
She went up on the stage, the doors were closed as the orchestra checked their tuning, and Howard Bamborough came out to take to the rostrum, with some applause. Vivienne went to the front of the stage.
“Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to a little show which we call VivWillow and Friends. Everybody needs friends.”
Willow played the intro on the piano and they sang it as a duet, with the orchestra coming in on the second verse. Willow could hear the Rocks adding a very gentle accompaniment. When Vivienne called Lee out to sing his set, there was an audible gasp from the audience. When she called out Ken, there were a lot of smiles, added to when Cliff came on to do his set. All the singers lived up to their reputation, and all made the effort to hug both Willow and Vivienne as they left the stage.
When Mac was called on, and the Rocks stood up at the back of the stage, Willow had to grin as she heard Sally yelp. Mac did his numbers, and Willow added more organ than before. At the end of his set, he hugged and kissed both girls before he left the stage. After their duet, Vivienne went to the front of the stage.
“Our last guest is a long-time friend. For some years she played cello in this orchestra. Please welcome a new songstress in the charts, Zara.”
As Zara came on, Vivienne gave her a hug and left to change. As Zara took her applause for her set, Vivienne came back in a similar white dress and they sang the heartfelt song from the Phantom as a duet, moving away to each side of the stage as they finished. The orchestra started the ‘Music of the Night’ as the four men, now with the half-masks, came on stage. At the end of that, there was applause, and then Willow blasted the opening to the final piece on the organ, with the orchestra and the Rocks following on.
The one change that they had made didn’t affect the music. Willow left the organ and came down to the centre of the stage as the others were singing, with the others now with a phantom on each side. Instead of the men taking the finale to the end, they did the ‘Sing for Me’ line and the three girls sang the notes, taking it higher with each turn. As they got higher, Howard, on his rostrum, switched the controller for the multipliers that they were going through, with the last notes sustained and sounding like twenty-one singers as the music, and singing, came to a sudden halt, and the stage lights went off.
They were in a line, across the stage, with the smoke around their feet, when the lights came back and the audience were on their feet as one, applauding. The Rocks joined the others, and they gestured for the orchestra to rise, and for Howard and Moyra to join the line. Then there were hugs and kisses.
Willow knew that the Head would want to say something so there was a hand-held microphone by the steps to the stage. Sure enough, she joined them and hugged a few before going to the front of the stage and calling for quiet.
“At the beginning of the school year, we set Willow and Vivienne two tasks. The first was to perform a show on this stage with the Junior Orchestra, which they did before Christmas. The second was to do it again with the Seniors before the end of the last term. Never did I think that this show would be the outcome. I suppose that throwing in a charity show in the football stadium was the catalyst, but today has been a revelation. I thank all of the other stars who have joined in and made this a day to remember. I’ve called in the lunchroom ladies, and we’ve got nibbles and drinks there. Thank you all for coming, and I hope that you leave in high spirits, as I will.”
As the auditorium was leaving, she went around the orchestra, giving hugs and words of appreciation. Slowly, everyone made their way to the lunchroom, Willow with Garry’s arm around her and the two of them flanked by the rest of the Rocks.
In the lunchroom, it was all laughter and talk. Clive and Jill were there and spoke to all the cast, asking if they could recreate the show in Abbey Road. The man from the football club came over to Willow.
“Willow. This is Jonathon, and I asked him along to see the show that he had told me was too smooth for television. He has now changed his mind and will broadcast our Saturday performance live.”
“That’s great! What about the others who will be filming?”
“They will do a lot of backstage and crowd shots, which will be added into the DVD. We just need someone to distribute it.”
Willow giggled and pulled the two of them over to Clive.
“You people need to talk. Agree to agree, and there’s money to be made.”
Bruce waylaid her on her way back to Garry.
“Willow Rose. This show was created with you driving it, so I’m told.”
“With a lot of help and advice, Bruce.”
“They also said that this will be your last show for a while.”
“It was certainly meant to be, but things have a way of changing the future. Look at that group of men over there, deep in discussion. I recognised some of them that we had worked with during that big charity tour. I wonder if they’re working out the weekends that their stadiums are vacant. One venue may become a few, if they put up enough money.”
She wasn’t wrong, as the man from Coventry came over to Willow and Vivienne with a piece of notepaper.
“Girls. I expect that the Head knew what she was doing when she invited the other venues along today. This is a list of stadiums that will be free to use on the weekends listed. I already have the staging and other things organised, so just need to get it moved from place to place. We know that most of you need to be at school, so the shows are all weekends, Friday to Sunday. Can you make it happen?”
“We can, sir, but we’ll need to get the others involved. Hold on and I’ll get them together.”
She went around the room, getting all the other stars, the Head, Howard, Clive, and Moyra to join them. The man outlined the likely scenario.
“I’ve been asked to see if this show can be performed as a charity show at the other football clubs, similar to the ones we did a couple of years ago. The early clubs have worked out the dates for when the teams are playing away. The two weekends of April can be Northampton and Luton. The first two weekends of May are Leicester and Birmingham. Then there’s a break until June, with Nottingham, Derby, Manchester, our show and Liverpool. That will give the students two weeks to the end of the term. I was told that Toxic Rocks will be heading for the USA soon after, so we wanted to get everything in before that.”
There was discussion after that, with Clive getting his diary from his briefcase and looking up dates and bookings for the others. Rocks had nothing on, and Mac thought that it would be a wonderful exposure to their more ‘elegant’ side. The three guys were able to have any dates they had pencilled in moved, and Zara said that the nightclubs could do without her, as long as she was out there making a bigger name for herself. Howard and the Head were certain that the orchestra and the tech boys would love to be part of a bigger event, with everyone certain that Vivienne and Willow would be on board. Willow turned to Garry.
“Darling. Can we get married in the break before the beginning of next term? It will be the weekend after the recording session. Something quiet, but with a good reception. If I get the orchestra into the studio on the Friday, we can finish my part of the two albums then. Maybe you could put down a few Rocks songs with them. Then we can get married at Stoneleigh on the Saturday and party at the club Saturday night. We can set up at Bourton, and the limo can take us home.”
“That’s only two weeks away! Are you sure that you can organise that?”
“Let’s go and ask Revend Russell.”
They went to where the church group were drinking and talking with Bruce. Sally saw them coming and rushed over to give Willow a hug. When she let her go, they went up to the others.
“Excuse us, sirs. Garry and I were planning a summer wedding, but he is now touring the USA. Will it be possible for us to arrange a quiet wedding at St. Mary's, for the Saturday before Easter?”
“Of course! How big is it going to be, a media extravaganza?”
“No, just us, our family and friends. I was hoping that we could see Malcolm to arrange a reception in the club.”
“I’ll talk to him about that today. You know that he has a soft spot for you, after all that you’ve done for the church, the club, and the village.”
The Bishop smiled.
“Would you mind if I officiated, if it’s the Saturday afternoon. We could do it as a duet, Reverend. I would offer you the Cathedral, should you want a big affair, but I see that you’re staying humble, Willow, and that’s a good trait to have.”
“I’ll make a formal request by email, Reverend, as well as one to Malcolm. That big meeting, just now, was a sudden expansion of the Coventry show into another eight cities to the end of June. Thank you for your help.”
Bruce joined them as they left.
“Giving me another couple of hot stories. How long has this been planned?”
“About ten minutes, Bruce. If we’re married, I’ll be able to go to America with Garry as Willow Randall. The expansion of the shows happened in this room. You’ll need to talk to your contact at the football club to get the details. He rattled of a bunch of dates and places, all in the Midlands.”
He went off to get the details, and they were joined by Vivienne and Zara, who steered them over to a quiet spot.
“You two had a good talk with the Bishop, there?”
“Yes, Viv. It hasn’t been confirmed, but we should be getting married at Stoneleigh, on the Saturday afternoon before Easter, with the Bishop officiating. The reception may be at the club that evening. How would you two like to be joint Maids of Honour?”
She was enveloped in hugs and cheek kisses, with Garry getting hugs and kisses of his own. After that, Willow went to talk to Howard Bamborough.
“Sir. I’m going to be at the recording studio next week, with Garry and the Rocks. Can we organise for the orchestra to be taken there on the Friday? That way, I can get that album out of the way, and Mac may want to record a few numbers with them. If it gets too strung out, we can use the Saturday morning to tidy up.”
“That will be done, young Willow. I have to tell you that today has been the most exciting concert I’ve ever conducted. The thought that we’ll be taking it to nine cities is intoxicating. And to be televised, live, on a Saturday evening. You realise that it will put the Seniors out there as the orchestra to have?”
“That means that you’ll have to manage their futures, sir. I’m sure that there will be approaches over the summer period for them to play. They should be getting fifty thousand a show to share between them. They deserve it, but they deserve the accolades more.”
The performers all went off to change into normal outfits. Willow told Viv about the Friday to record the second album, and she said that she would be at the studio then. They arranged to meet with Zara on Thursday, in London, to look for bridal wear, with Viv picking Willow up in her limo to go to the city and coming back that evening
After they left the school with the others in the coach, Willow found herself in a private dining room for dinner with the Rocks and Rufus, their manager, who had been at the show, asked by Mac to listen to the band with the organ. Over the course of the meal, she told him about Peter, and the fact that the sales were dropping without fresh albums. He agreed that she needed to be on stage in America, and that she could help the band get a bigger sound.
She told him about the two albums, one already recorded and with Clive, with the next to be recorded after the next Rocks album. He got Vivienne's details from her.
“Look, if I can buy the two of you from Peter, I can say that I’m going to groom you for bigger things after a couple of years. I’ve worked with Clive a lot, in the past, so see no problems moving on. When is your next statement from Peter?”
“It should be on my email in a couple of days.”
“When you get it, empty your account, and I’ll see him next week.”
When Garry took her home, they kissed as he dropped her off.
“See you, Monday, in the studio, my love.”
“I’ll be there, my darling.”
He drove away and she went into the house. Wendy gave her a hug.
“Big day, love?”
“You could say that, Mum. You could say that!”
Marianne Gregory © 2025