to the Sound of Musical Theatre Wellington Rocks

When an elite cast of talented young singers and dancers from a group of local schools come together to celebrate musical theatre, there are few better venues than Wellington College’s G.W. Annenberg theatre. Friday 21 October saw a full house as performers from Edgbarrow School, St Crispin’s, Garth Hill College, Eagle House and Wellington College joined forces to reprise hit numbers from a variety of shows, and to raise funds for two causes dear to Wellington’s heart, Autistica and the Cerebral Palsy Trust.

Autistica is the UK’s leading autism research charity, with a vision of creating long, healthy, happy lives for autistic people and their families. The CPT, inspired by the example of David Lofthouse, was created by a group of Wellington students who wanted not only to raise awareness and support for the cerebral palsy community, but also to raise funds to enable life-changing operations for children with cerebral palsy.

This year’s show, imaginatively put together by Wellington students and ambassadors for those charities, Ollie P and Jasper K, was effortlessly compered by Wellingtonians past and present, and saw excerpts from musicals as diverse as Six, Les Mis, The Little Shop of Horrors, Bugsy Malone, Hairspray, and Oliver

This was an evening full of song and dance and fun and laughter, and one which saw the audience on its feet, keen to contribute to performances that will live long in the memory. By the time the whole ensemble came together for a rousing and emotional rendition of One Day More, opinion was unanimous: why travel to the West End or Broadway when young talent like this is right on your doorstep?!