The Viking Park Singers won’t just be singing Friday at Italian Fest in Gurnee.
They’ll be doing it all — setting up the tables, chairs and napkins; collecting tickets; serving pasta, salad, rolls and brownies; entertaining; and cleaning up.
“We have two seatings, one at 5 p.m. and one at 6:45 p.m.,” said Rita Byrd, a Beach Park resident who has directed the Viking Park Singers for 21 years. Each seating can serve up to 175 guests, she said.
“People come in and they get pasta, and we have a raffle, and an hour later, we serenade our guests. The singers, who have been running around the room, put their ladles down and run up to the front and they all sing, ‘O Solo Mia’ and ‘That’s Amore,’ ” she said.
When the first group leaves, “We turn the room around and we do it again,” Byrd said. “It’s a little bit hectic, but it’s fun.”
Byrd, who studied choral music education in college and serves as the director of music and liturgy at Our Lady of Humility Church in Beach Park, said the Viking Park Singers was founded in 1989 to perform popular music to the community. Forty-five Lake County residents belong to the choir.
“We don’t cover a classical repertoire. We do popular show tunes. The chorus told me when I came in to direct, if I brought Mozart with me, they were leaving,” she said.
“The people who founded this chorus had a strong background in barbershop. That was more the venue they were coming from.”
So Italian Fest, the group’s annual fundraiser, is meant to be upbeat, she said. “I select music that’s recognizable, so people can enjoy listening to it.”
At Italian Fest, the Viking Park Singers also will perform some selections to tease to its June 26 concert, which will be dedicated to 1950s music.
Some pieces planned include “Love Me Tender,” and Broadway show tunes.
Tickets can be bought at the Gurnee Park District’s Hunt Club Building at the front desk. The first seating usually is full, so those buying at the last minute might need to consider the second seating, she said.
Byrd said the audience will enjoy the chorus because “They are great singers and also have wonderful personalities.” And, she added, “They are hams and they love to sing.”
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Sheryl DeVore is a freelance writer.
Italian Fest
When: 5 and 6:45 p.m. seatings Friday
Where: Viking Park, 4374 Old Grand Ave., Gurnee
Tickets: $6 to $11
Information 847-623-7788; www.gurneeparkdistrict.com