The crowd went wild for the performances of 12 Mitchell’s Plain schools at the annual Next Generation Musical Showcase at Liberty Promenade Mall.
The self-choreographed musical showcase, which took place on Saturday August 24, was themed Save The Earth.
The six winners were Imperial Primary School, Lantana Primary School, Yellowwood Primary School, Lentegeur School for Learners with Special Educational Needs, Spine Road High School and Oval North Technical High School.
The other school’s which performed at the showcase were Eastville Primary School, Liesbeeck Primary School, Mitchell’s Plain Primary School, Woodville Primary School, Lentegeur High School and Cedar High School of Arts.
The winners received R10 000 for their school, and gift vouchers were handed to the pupils and their teachers for helping.
The rap duo of Llewellyn Junior Lambrecht, 7, from Tafelsig, and Zubair Rainers, 10, from Lentegeur, from Yellowwood Primary School, stole the show.
Zubair said it took a week for them to rehearse their rap piece. “We did a remix on Baby Shark and focused on pollution in the ocean. My teacher helped Llewellyn and myself with our performance, as we wrote our own rap song.”
Oval North Technical High School teacher, Donovan Forbes said it took a week to prepare for the performance and everything came together on the day.
Mr Forbes said they would be using the prize money to develop their arts department at their school.
Teachers at Lentegeur School for Learners with Special Educational Needs (LSEN), Dameer Hollenbach and James Hendricks, helped their pupils with their performance.
Mr Hollenbach said: “Our pupils created their own ideas for their performance. Mr Hendricks composed their performance. We had so much fun.”
They have incorporated the theme of the showcase into their curriculum and made it a requirement for pupils to learn about their environment. They will be using their prize money to upgrade their school’s sound equipment, said Mr Hollenbach.
Liberty Promenade said they had committed to doing their part for the preservation of the environment. Brian Unsted, Liberty Two Degrees’ Asset Management Executive of Liberty Promenade, said: “The performers unpacked this year’s theme very well and they entertained thoroughly, but more importantly, taught the audience to be aware of their environment.”
Brenda Bibby, Liberty Promenade’s general manager, said they were thrilled at the support from the community and the event created an opportunity for youth to showcase their talents. “Planning starts now for next year’s showcase, we look forward to it,” she said.