Joseph comes out on top!

Youngsters from St Paul’s joined with children from Western and Westgate schools to perform Joseph in a Day on 3 February. The show was based on the popular musical written by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber in 1972. It involved a cast of nearly 30, who met their producer Bronwen Dixie for the first time on Saturday morning.

Leading man was 13-year-old Peter Lucas from Hyde, who says he loves singing and has been taking part in the annual performances since he was six years old. St Paul’s musicals have been running for around eight years – and have grown increasingly ambitious and popular.

This was the first time an external coach and producer was brought in to work with the children. Bronwen is a freelance dance teacher who teaches in various performing arts schools across the south coast.

‘It’s an enormous challenge to do a show from scratch in just one day’, she admitted before the performance began. ‘The children hadn’t met me before and I didn’t know them – but they’ve responded wonderfully. Normally schools spend months preparing for this kind of production.’

Youth work leader Revd Mary Copping explained that the day workshop had included a variety of activities alongside rehearsals and drama coaching. ‘The idea is for the children to learn the dance moves and words but also have lots of fun playing games and doing craft activities as well. We wanted it to be an enjoyable, relaxed day with a fun performance at the end with lots of balloons and ribbons!’

The rector of St Paul’s, Canon Peter Seal, said: ‘This year’s performance of Joseph was a real treat. Along with parents and supporters I was captivated by the energy, enthusiasm and achievement of the children and young people. It was a fantastic, high-energy event, conveying a well-known Bible story in a truly memorable way. Here’s to more!’