On Christmas Eve at 4 p.m. in St. Martin’s Church there will be a Crib  Service  which is usually attended by  250-300 people.  This year we are offering the chance for people to play or  sing a Christmas song during this  service.  They can do this as a soloist, a  duet, or part of a group/choir. There will  be spaces for up to four songs to be  sung or played in the service.  These  songs will be part of Christian worship, so songs that do not relate to the birth of  Christ would unsuitable, e.g Jingle Bells,  When Santa got stuck up the chimney,  etc. This does not mean that songs have  to be traditional Carols. 

Auditions will take place on Wednesday  18th November  in St. Martin’s Church, as this is the place where the service will take place.  There will be no nasty judges, no negative comments, and no feedback other than polite encouragement will be  given.  There will be two sessions, from 4 - 5.30 p.m. and 7 -9 p.m. If these are over-subscribed we will  have additional auditions on Wednesday 25th November.  This event is intended for people who live in  Knebworth or attend Knebworth school.

Each person will have 6 minutes to set up,  perform their song/music, and vacate the stage.  The time slots will be allocated and publicised by email and on the web site.  There will be a P.A. System set up  with two microphones.  Those who are singing can sing unaccompanied, provide their own backing track  by bringing it on their own .mp3 player which can be plugged into the P.A. system, or by bring a pianist  who can play our piano.  People will only be allowed to move into, out of, or around the church when  there is no-one singing/playing.  Videoing of the songs may take place to help the panel decide who to  pick, but these will not be for public viewing and will be wiped after the decisions have been made.  The  panel’s decision will be final with no correspondence or discussion about the choices.  Those who are  chosen may not necessarily be the best technically or musically as other factors may be taken into  account, such as their age and the song they have chosen.     

St. Martin’s Church has a Child Protection Policy and is committed to caring for and safeguarding children.  However, we will not be able to provide care and protection for individual children because of  the nature of this event.  Parents or guardians will have to watch the children who are in their care, and  no unaccompanied children under 14 years old will be allowed in.

To download a copy of a .pdf ( Adobe Acrobat ) file with details and an application from, click here. The completed application from can be left in St. Martin's Church.

To open/download an application form only in .doc format,  which can be completed, saved and sent by email, click here.