Friday 26 / April / 2024
Muscat: Young performing talents were the stars of the night during ‘A Night at the Musicals,’ a show organised by the British School Muscat (BSM) last Thursday.
The students of BSM performed scenes from a range of world famous musicals, including Les Misérables, Oliver, Chicago and the Sound of Music.
Katie Bamforth, head of dance in BSM Senior School, told the Times of Oman that they chose a medley of the most famous shows, which allowed the students to show how versatile they are on the stage and play a variety of roles.
“It’s all about them. A lot of them like to challenge themselves and do things they haven’t done before,” Bamforth said.
Deborah El Alwan, director and producer and head of drama at BSM, said they gave students all the chance to showcase their talent. “We have such a talented bunch of students here. We give them all the chance to let the community see how talented they are”, she said.
She said that the older boys and girls had the chance to choose the musicals they like and where they could excel in their singing and dancing skills.
Commenting on the ambitions of some of their students, El Alwan said some of the older students will soon enroll in musical theatre in the UK.
Proud, but sad on the other hand, she added that the younger students will be there to take it over.
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“We want to inculcate in them a passion for dance, music and drama. That’s our responsibility,” she said.
Ayah El Alwan, in year eight and one of the rising stars of the night, and is performing as Artful Dodger in ‘Oliver!’ said:
“I’m really keen on drama and I think I’ll become an actor playing the bigger roles in singing and dancing.”
Alex Pereyra, who is in year eleven and played Bernado in ‘West Side Story,’ said it was the first time he was acting and singing in this show. “I really enjoyed it a lot,” he said. The response of the audience was overwhelming.
Alex’ mother Sonia said, “It was a great performance. I think these children have a great talent.”
Other spectators also said they very much appreciated the singing and dancing skills of the young performers.
“I absolutely loved it,” said Anis Bekir from Tunisia. “I’m so proud and I’m sure I’m speaking on behalf of everyone. And it gets better every year,” he said.
“Spectacular, we really enjoyed it. It would be nice to see more of those musicals,” said Rikke Nielsen from Denmark.
After the end of the show, Kai Vacher, principal of BSM, lauded the talent of the performers.
“We feel blessed to be able to work with such a wonderful group of young people. It’s fantastic to see how they develop over the years and grow to become accomplished performers,” he said.
The performers received a standing ovation after they performed their last chorus in which they chanted, “Everyone deserves a chance to fly.”
It was precisely such a chance that they got during last Thursday’s show, whether performing for the first time or not.
