ON Saturday former Young Voices Russell Painter, Beth Dunn and Laura Bassett, led the youngsters in a concert performance of a condensed version of Leonard Bernstein's masterpiece, and it was brilliant.

As Tony, Russell treated us to a superb rendition of Maria, and joined Beth as Maria in One Hand, One Heart which was beautiful. Lauren Tristram's performance of Somewhere was also exceptional, and I was very impressed by another guest singer, Chris Cox, as Riff.

The ensemble's version of Tonight was encored, having received thunderous applause the first time, and the perennial showstopper, Gee, Officer Krupke, headed by Stuart Orme as Action, and Miles Lawrence as Arab, showed us a star of the future, young Miles having an obvious flair for comedy, and singing well too.

At times it was difficult to hear Laura - her voice needed some amplification, and I was disappointed with America, which the girls sang superbly, but they were too static - this song needs to be moved to!

The second half comprised a selection from the choir's tour of Poland a few weeks previously, including Maleezwe, a traditional African number, and I particularly enjoyed Little Horses, arranged by Aaron Copland. The programme ended with Rhythm of Life sung by the entire ensemble, and they received, deservedly, a standing ovation for giving us a very enjoyable evening. VJS