A MUSICAL society is set to celebrate its 100 year history with a two-night concert showcasing music from shows it has performed over the past century.

When Pickering Musical Society was officially formed in 1919, Pickering had a vibrant musical scene before the First World War and plans for forming an official musical society had been around since 1914. With the war came the departure of many men from Pickering and the surrounding area so it wasn’t until 1919 that the society was formally created.

Formed by music lovers of the town including Mrs Kirk of Houndgate Hall, the society performed its first production in the summer of 1919, the operetta “Cupid & the Ogre”. Following the great success of the production the society then began to plan more concerts and operas. The years that followed saw the society stage nearly all Gilbert & Sullivan’s famous works and the first pantomime followed in 1922 in the newly opened Memorial Hall.

This year also marks the 40th anniversary of The Kirk Theatre, the home of Pickering Musical Society. The former Methodist Chapel in Hungate was purchased in 1979 and work started immediately converting the chapel into a theatre.

The birthday concert A Centenary of Song will be on Friday, June 28 and Saturday, June 29.

TTickets are priced from £12 and are available online at www.kirktheatre.co.uk, by telephone 01751-474833 or in person at the box office on Tuesdays between 11am and 1pm.