Academy’s Christmas Bonanza

The first Christmas Bonanza show at a Wisbech academy since the pandemic entertained an audience including the Mayoress of Wisbech this week.

The Thomas Clarkson Academy Christmas Bonanza was a show of art, music, drama and dance and Mayoress Janet Tanfield attended with council member David Sagoo.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity to see the results of everyone’s hard work,” said Coun Tanfield, who told the Year 10 dancers that she was looking forward to Christmas and wished them luck before their performance.

Under the title All The World’s A Stage, the show included drama from The Grinch, dance from Year 10 and Year 11 performers and music from woodwind instrumentalists who had only been together for a few weeks.

A display of student art greeted visitors on Tuesday evening when head of art Sarah Loosemore introduced the performers to a packed audience.

The school is currently collaborating with Cambridgeshire Music to encourage and enable students to play an instrument, and the academy’s woodwind orchestra only formed seven weeks ago giving its debut performance at the show.

The story of the Grinch was portrayed in two acts by members of the academy’s drama club and a trio of musicians performed the Wham favourite, Last Christmas.

Singer Grace (15) also led the communal singing of All I Want for Christmas as the finale and said afterwards she had enjoyed being part of the show.

With ambitions of appearing on London’s West End Stage, Grace has been singing since the age of five and would like to become a professional singer when she leaves school.

“I sing everything, all of the time, and would love to go to the West End. I have a lot of confidence and love to perform, ” she said.