In this episode Francois Matarasso reads some Old Words that he wrote a long time ago, and feels have become relevant to him and us once more. This time he gives us an extract from a book called Where We Dream: West Bromwich Opera Society and the fine art of musical theatre, published in 2012 by Multistorey.

The book begins by quoting Larry Shriner, from 2001, who wrote that “the modern system of art is not an essence or a fate but something we have made”. Francois then begins by noting that “ members of West Bromwich Operatic Society can be sensitive about being called amateurs, not because it is inaccurate, but because of the perception that amateur is a synonym for mediocre, self-regarding, even incompetent. And it is true that the word is sometimes used almost as an insult—and not least between artists themselves”.