St Ed's Got Talent 2010

Date: Saturday 27 February 2010

The Stella Rogers Appeal hopefully gained a further financial boost yesterday evening when the second coming of 'St Ed's Got Talent' transferred this year from the limited facilities of the Old Gym to the greater space of the main hall.

The Entertainments' Committee were determined to provide entertainment (!) with a wide range and variety of performers, to fill the auditorium, and to raise as much as possible for the worthy cause. We were honoured to have members of Stella's family as guests for the evening, and I trust they enjoyed what they saw and heard.

Well, they should have done as the ten pupil acts vied for the winner's trophy. It is impossible to praise too highly the sheer nerve, confidence, preparation, and professionalism of each and every one, from Lower Fifth tyros, to the more experienced members of the Sixth Form. 'Out of the Blue', a boy band, drew the short straw and opened proceedings, to be followed by Faye Moulsdale, Tom Vafidis, Alice Hickey, Ray Jiang, Carl Fryer, Max Rushton, Aimee Walker-Reid and Corin Vafidis, Caryn van Rooyen, and finally, the Alchemists - another boy band, headed by Alexander Gibson as lead vocalist.

Each of the acts earned massive applause from the capacity crowd, and largely sympathetic opinions from the four judges - David Knight, Janet Mander, Anna Greenhalgh, and Natasha Hopper. It was not difficult, though, for them to identify the two who would fight it out for the title - the decision was unanimous in favour of recalling Tom Vafidis, and his alto sax, and the Alchemists.

Before the play-off in front of the mythical clapometer, the audience were subjected to some guest artistes offering a return to the days of rock'n'roll, some stand-up comedy, a comic recitation a la Stanley Holloway, and close harmony vocals. The return of 'The Wanderer' after a gap of 27 years since its previous rendition in an open air concert on the terrace, gave an ageing rock'n'roller the chance to strut his stuff for possibly the last time!

The clapometer never lies, and it rightly awarded the prize to Tom Vafidis whose brilliant solo performance, backed by Seth Scott Deuchar on drums, Cameron Dawson on bass, and Will Bersey on piano, just outshone the quartet of Gibson, Tom Lowen, Oli Kirkness, and Jacob Austen, Their time will come, surely! Rayne Maney presented the trophy, and the audience went home well satisfied. Three hours of entertainment with a capital 'E', all for a fiver and whatever else they were kind enough to put into the collection buckets which were frequently jangled throughout the evening!

Many thanks and all credit to those who worked so hard to make it all work. To comperes Liz Sears and Leigh Millard for their seamless banter, to the Entertainments' Committee for staging the event, to Mark Sell for his professional guidance and encouragement to the nervy performers, to the Hawkins duo, and the stage crew, to those who ran the bar, competing for the highest takings!, and to everyone who came to support. But, most of all, to the competitors who stared triumph and disaster in the face, and came out smiling with the pleasure of performance.

As for how much was raised? I'll let you all know when the accounting is all done!