Talented local musician Dylan Forge brought the house down for his first concert at the Wahgunyah School of Arts Hall last Friday.
There was a lot of love in the room for local talent Dylan Forge when he stepped on to the Wahgunyah School of Arts Hall stage last Friday for his first show ‘Dylan Forge Live’.
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The 19-year-old crooner beamed at the crowd before delivering a beautiful rendition of Frank Sinatra’s ‘Come Fly with Me’.
The capacity-filled room, clearly stunned by his talent, burst into applause following his first song, with Dylan warmly welcoming everyone to the special event.
It would be the first of many loud rounds of applause the singer would earn over the next 90 minutes.
With smooth-as-butter vocals and a charismatic presence, Dylan effortlessly executed a blend of crooning and Broadway classics.
Paying tribute to his idol Frank Sinatra, Dylan charmed the crowd with the late singer’s biggest classics including ‘That’s Life’, ‘New York, New York,’ and, ‘My Way’.
Dylan also showed his impressive baritone texture through show tunes from Babes in Arms, Les Miserables, Company, Man of La Mancha and Chess the Musical. Between takes, he bantered with the crowd in true showman fashion, proving he is right at home on stage.
While Dylan is well known around Corowa for his impressive piping skills, playing a major part in local Anzac Day commemorations, the former Rennie local began his singing journey at The Scots School Albury in 2017.
Originally a pipe band member, Dylan’s promise in the choral department was discovered during the auditions for the in-house written musical, The Last Prawn, which premiered at the school’s Chapel Hall in 2018.
During his HSC, Dylan was provided a scholarship from Murray River Fine Music to study singing under Ian Nisbet. The weekly lessons in Melbourne taught him the complexities of Broadway singing.
After completing high school in 2021, Dylan began studying under various other high profile musical talents, such as Stephanie Acraman whilst briefly at Adelaide University, and former head of voice at Victorian College of Arts and Monash University, renowned Opera Australia soprano Merlyn Quaife AM.
On a cold starry night in Wahgunyah, Dylan thanked the crowd of almost 150 people for their warm support as well as his sponsors Corowa Distilling Co and Essence of Harrogate.
“I want to thank everyone for coming out tonight, I hope you’re all having wonderful night,” he said.
“This is an opportunity for me to improve as well as give back to the community that has supported me.”
Dylan then introduced his support act and Celtic folk band Inveran, consisting of Liam Nicolson, Jonny Coe, Storm Tanuvasa and Mitch Russell.
Dylan joins his support act Inveran on stage to perform ‘Loch Lomond’ with the crowd enthusiastically joining in.
The young group from Albury, delivered two songs with a blend of traditional of the Great Highland Bagpipe, the acoustic tones of the guitar, along with a drum kit, djembe and electric bass.
Included in their performance was their latest release ‘Our Heroes’ recognising the contribution of the 2/23rd Battalion on The Scots School Albury’s proud traditions and culture, as well as ‘Pokarekare Ana’ and ‘The Blue Cloud’.
Following a rousing applause from the crowd, Dylan joined the group onstage to sing ‘Loch Lomond’ with the crowd enthusiastically joining in.
Dylan closed the evening with ‘Theme from New York, New York’.
By this stage, the crowd was fully immersed in the show – the final moments a celebration of an outstanding performance by a local star well and truly on the rise.
Dylan will perform his next show Friday, November 11 at the Howlong Golf Resort in November. Stay tuned for details.
Packed to the rafters! Nearly 150 people gathered in the Wahgunyah School of Arts Hall to see Dylan perform.
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