Mighty is the theme of the choral show Calgary’s One Voice Chorus (OVC) will be offering music lovers on Saturday, March 22nd at the Scarboro United Church.

"Think Big" promises music that caters to every taste – from motown hit "Ain’t No Mountain High Enough" to the renaissance canon Sicut Cervus inspired by a pretty Psalm.

"And what big concert would be complete without an Abba medley; so we’ve got that going on too," says OVC Artistic Director Jane Perry.

This is the kind of show you may find yourself singing along to. OVC has been together for three years now and rehearses 11 Monday nights previous to each show.

Perry and her partner soprano Cora Castle founded the choir in September of 2011 as an auditioned, mixed-voice ensemble for singers who are members of the LGBTQ community as well as their straight allies. Perry couldn’t be more proud of how much the choir has blossomed in that time.

"We are now in our third season and this choir has just grown by leaps and bounds," Perry says. "We’ve been really heartened by the response we have received from the community."

Included in the show’s repertoire will be a piece by chorus member Daryl Crockford entitled "Stand Up", which Perry says is "a look at recent queer history in the western world", and a sort of anthem encouraging "the queer community to stand up and be proud of who you are and make sure we all live in peace and harmony".

"Think Big" will not only be large in variety and subject matter, but in numbers as well. The Weekend World-Music Choir, conducted by Edmonton’s  Scott Leithead, will be performing as a special guest.

"The Weekend World-Music Choir is a choir being created on that weekend and will probably never perform together again," Perry explains.

The voices in this choir are assembling as part of a choral workshop led by the African music specialist Leitland. Participants will meet the Friday night previous to the concert, rehearse all day Saturday, and perform Sunday night. The workshop aims to illustrate how people coming together from all over the city and all walks of life can assemble and unite to create something wonderful in a short, devoted amount of time.

For the final number of the evening, both choirs will join forces for what Perry calls "a truly big show-stopper" involving 100 voices strong.

OVC will represent 32 of those voices.

Auditions will not be taking place again until the end of summer, as OVC strengthens the lineup of pieces they will be performing by memory at the Unison Festival in Ottawa this May.

"Unison is sort of like the gay choral Olympics in that it happens every four years in Canada," Perry says. Unlike the Olympics, however, there are no winners or losers, no adjudication and no podiums to stand on. Unison is more a celebration of queer choral groups and a way to acknowledge the accomplishments the groups have made.

"We are one of I think three brand new queer choirs singing at the festival," Perry says. "I’m just so delighted that a choir that is only three years old is strong enough... and excited enough to go to Unison."

The group has been fundraising hard for the trip, including the sales of chocolate and coffee, but perhaps the most successful of these endeavours was the Rainbow Cabaret the group held in January. The Cabaret saw a variety of solo performances by chorus members just ‘doing their own thing’.

"The audience loved it to the point that we’re thinking about making it an annual event," Perry says.

The director has selected an Alberta-inspired repertoire to bring to Ottawa, including a piece by former OVC member Peter Cameron, a song written by Nancy Laberge of the local band the Backyard Betties, and "It takes a Village" by Joan Szymko.

The latter song will act as a thank-you piece to the "three fairy godmothers" that helped OVC flourish. These are the Unitarian Church of Calgary who graciously donated a rehearsal space free of charge the choir’s first season; the Calgary Men’s Chorus who advertised in the OVC’s programs and generated needed cash flow; and the queer choir Tone Cluster of Ottawa, Perry and Castle’s former stomping grounds, who of their own volition raised the initial $1,000 that got the OVC on its feet.

"We are the child and it took a village to help us get where we are," Perry says. "What a journey; and it isn’t over. On we go."

Concert tickets are being sold at Dick & Jane, New Age Books & Crystals, as well as on their website. Regular seats run at $20 while seniors and students can purchase theirs for $15. Admission is free for kids 12 and under, so be sure to bring the children in your life for what will be a night of family fun. The performance begins at 8pm.