On Wednesday 18 January, Year 5 set off on a very exciting trip to the O2 Arena in London to take part in the Young Voices Concert with 8840 other school children from around the country. Not only this, the children became backing singers for Heather Small, one of the guest artists appearing on stage this year.
After a hearty lunch at Frankie & Benny’s and a rousing rendition of ‘Happy Birthday’ to Henry, to the delight of the other diners in the restaurant, we made our way into the arena. The school banner was proudly displayed at the very front of the stage as the children and staff took their seats in the front row. The children sang and danced their way through the afternoon and evening and enjoyed watching the other acts such as the Urban Stride Dancers, The Beatbox Collective, Anna Phoebe and Heather Small.
Well done Year 5 for a fantastic day – making memories to enjoy forever.
Mrs Pashby, Prep Director of Music
Reports from the children
With excitement bubbling in the air, both classes met in the Upper Prep Hall to get sorted into groups. Once we had gathered everything together, we made our way to the coach and the start of the epic adventure. After what seemed like ages, we arrived at the O2 and had a lovely, chilled lunch at Frankie and Benny’s. It was then time to get ourselves into the arena. An amazing conductor called David Lawrence helped us to rehearse the songs and then before the Concert we had time to chill out some more. And then it started.. with screams, cheers and torches waving, an amazing light show started. The songs flowed, each one sounding as brilliant as the last. There were cool sound effects from The Beatbox Collectives. The King of Dance, Andy and the Urban Striders came on to show us their dazzling dancing. Finally, the wonderful singer, Heather Small came on to sing her huge hit ‘Proud’. The atmosphere was amazing, with over 10000 people singing, dancing and enjoying the show – it easily trumped the atmosphere at football matches and maybe even the Olympics! Although it was a long day, it was an amazing day. Thank you to all of the teachers.
By Aarush 5D
When we got to the O2, seeing the huge amount of people was amazing. We rehearsed all of the songs and watched some of the other performances with the other 8000 children. There were some brilliant performances from singers, dancers and an amazing violinist called Anna Phoebe. Even though it took nearly six hours to get there and back, it was worth all of the time we had spent practising. I loved all of it but my absolute highlight was the Trolls Pop Medley!
By Chloe 5D