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The theatre – currently the home of the smash hit musical ‘The Phantom of the Opera’ –played host to 15 Stagecoach schools from around the UK, as well as the All Boys’ Ballet Company.

In a packed evening’s entertainment the show featured an eclectic mix of musical styles, popular shows, famous songs and original work. Everything, in fact, from musical theatre excerpts such as ‘Bugsy Malone,’ ‘Les Miserables,’ ‘Thoroughly Modern Millie’ and ‘Cabaret;’ to rock, soul and Bollywood; as well as dance interpretations of songs by - amongst others – Queen, Michael Jackson and the Bee Gees.

15 Stagecoach Schools were represented in the show from the following areas: Ascot, Bridgend and the Vale, Chiswick, Congleton, Cranleigh, Dulwich, Evesham, Harrow, Newmarket, Plymouth and Ivybridge, Reading East, Retford and Worksop, Torquay, Uxbridge and Wirral.

As well as Stagecoach Schools, the evening also featured ‘White Noise’ performed by students from the All Boys’ Ballet Company:

The All Boys’ Ballet Company has been running since April 2007. Taught by Tony Aiken (ISTD CDE), the company was especially designed for boys between the ages of 8 and 18 with an interest in ballet. In September 2008 a new class was introduced, ‘Little Boys’ Ballet’ for boys aged between 4 and 7 years.

Tony’s classes offer students the opportunity to learn the discipline of ballet with other like minded boys in a safe, fun and structured environment. The work the boys do in class - placing emphasis on building stamina, jumping exercises and strengthening training - has stood the students in very good stead: six of them have been selected for this year’s Easy Stages production, Joshua Webb has been accepted by the prestigious Royal Ballet School, and recently the students were entered for Imperial Ballet exams with the ISTD and they all received merits and distinctions.

The programme for the evening ran as follows:

Act One

• Stagecoach Harrow with ‘Thoroughly Modern Millie’
• Stagecoach Chiswick with ‘Romeo and Juliet’
• Stagecoach Reading East with ‘Les Miserables’
• Stagecoach Uxbridge with ‘Footloose’
• Stagecoach Cranleigh with ‘Radio Gaga and We Will Rock You’
• Stagecoach Evesham with ‘Bugsy Malone’
• Stagecoach Ascot with ‘Sunday In The Park At Ascot’
• Stagecoach Dulwich with ‘Good and Evil’

Act Two

• Boys’ Ballet with ‘White Noise’
• Stagecoach Congleton with ‘The Wild West’
• Stagecoach Newmarket with ‘School Day Out’
• Stagecoach Plymouth & Ivybridge with ‘Cabaret Medley’
• Stagecoach Retford & Worksop with ‘I Can See Now The Rain Has Gone’
• Stagecoach Bridgend and the Vale with ‘Showstopping Kander and Ebb’
• Stagecoach Wirral with ‘MJ Mix’
• Stagecoach Torquay with ‘Saturday Night Fever’

Well done to all the students who took part!

See how it all came together on the day, behind the scenes on Stagecoach.TV

Photos by Sam Pearce