WHEN Carol Dawson’s son in law William Theakston announced he was going to row the Atlantic as part of a team in the Talisker Whisky Challenge in December, she knew she had to do something to help.

So Carol, of Beamsley, together with soprano Alexandra Lowe, organised a charity gala concert in support of William and his fellow Men of Oar team members and their charities Bowel Cancer UK and Combat Street.

Alexandra will perform at the charity gala concert, along with guests from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, at The Priory Church, Bolton Abbey, on Saturday, October 20 from 7.30pm. Tickets are £20 to include interval drink in the Tower at The Priory. The four members of Men of Oar will be present at the concert where they will do a presentation on their task ahead.

Men of Oar formed to support Robin Drysdale in his fight against cancer. Sam Bolt-Laurence, Will Theakston and David Wallis joined together to physically and mentally challenge themselves to raise awareness of the two charities. Although Robin has now completed his chemotherapy he is still undergoing treatment. Bowel Cancer UK continue to offer advice and support to Robin in dealing with the UK’s second biggest cancer killer. Three of the team are serving and ex-serving army personnel. Having witnessed the effects of increased mental illness among former military members they want to raise awareness of the hard work done by the veteran mental health charity – Combat Stress.

The challenge The Men of Oar will take part in is a 3,000 mile trans-Atlantic row from the Canary Islands to Antigua to raise £250,000 for the charities. It is a 40 day journey of relentless rowing and sleep deprivation, not to mention numerous sores and blisters. The row is a part of the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge which starts in December 2018.

It is hoped the charity gala will help the team towards their fundraising goal. It features Alexandra Lowe, a soprano from Lancashire, currently training at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama Opera Studio under the tutelage of Ruby Philogene and Yvonne Kenny. She recently graduated with a distinction for her Masters of Music, and previously with a First Class Bachelor of Music degree from the Royal Northern College of Music.

In recent years she has been awarded the Elisabeth Harwood Memorial Prize, the Joyce and Michael Kennedy Award for Singing Strauss, the Bessie Cronshaw Song Cycle Prize, the Alexander Young Song Prize, the Oncken Song Prize, the Elsie Thurston Song Prize and the Joyce Budd Prize at the Kathleen Ferrier Young Singers Bursary. She is a recipient of a Silver Medal from the Worshipful Company of Musicians and was the inaugural recipient of the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation Sarah Brightman Scholarship.

Roles include Lucia I/II The Long Christmas Dinner, Anna Gomez The Consul (GSMD), Barena Jenufa (Grange Park Opera), The Bride/Wife/Mother The Vanishing Bridegroom, Mrs. Coyle Owen Wingrave (British Youth Opera), Theodora, Métella La Vie Parisienne, Fiordiligi Così fan tutte, Rose Maurrant Street Scene, Helena A Midsummer Night’s Dream (RNCM), Mabel Pirates of Penzance, Angelina Trial by Jury, Gianetta The Gondo-liers (International G&S Festival).

On the concert platform works include Requiem Brahms, Te Deum Dvorâk, Messiah Handel, Requiem Fauré, The Armed Man Jenkins, Petite Messe Solenelle Rossini, Requiem Chilcott, Spirit of England Elgar, Requiem Mozart and Vaughan Williams’ Serenade to Music live on BBC Radio 3 with the CBSO. Other radio appearances include performing live alongside David Owen Norris on BBC radio 3’s In Tune.

Upcoming projects include Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte) and Helena (A Midsummer Night’s Dream) at the Guildhall School of Music.

For tickets and further information contact Carol Dawson on 01756 710258 or 07710843003, email: enquiries@alexandralowe.co.uk. To make a donation to the Men of Oar visit: www.menofoar.com