Top talent

Gifted students wowed friends and judges in the annual Waltham Toll Bar Academy’s Got Talent competition.

Competitors with judges and staff at Waltham Toll Bar Academy’s Got Talent.

All demonstrated an enormous amount of courage and confidence, as well as talent, when they performed in front of piers and staff in the Drama Hall.

The audience played its part during an entertaining show, encouraging friends who took centre stage.

There were solo dancers, a heavy metal band, and everything in between.

The judges were Chief Executive of Lincolnshire Gateway Academies Trust Mr Brown, Academy Principal Mr Whittle, Assistant Principal Mr Fothergill and Year 13 A-level music student Isabella Rowson.

Mr Whittle congratulated all the performers and thanked staff for their support and encouragement.

“The show has demonstrated the fantastic talent at Waltham Toll Bar,” he said.

“Really well done to all who performed. You have made our decisions very difficult.”

Co-director of Arts Gemma Carter also praised the students, who each received certificates in recognition of their efforts.

“It takes a lot of courage to perform on stage in front of your friends,” she said. “Hopefully, this will grow their confidence still further. It also takes hard work and dedication.

“We are fortunate to have some genuinely gifted students at the academy. We aim to nurture their talent and give them a platform to express themselves. This is what this competition was all about.

“Nobody is a loser; they are all winners and should be rightly proud of themselves.”

She thanked Miss Davidson, Mr Bridges, Mrs Hadley and Mr Longden for their support of the students and hard work in producing the show.

While the judges deliberated, Year 9’s Kelvin Xue showed why he was last year’s winner with a virtuoso performance on the piano. The evening was compered by Jasper Barnbook from Year 10.

Mr Whittle added: “We have strengthened our music and performing arts in recent years and are keen to support our creative students in any way we can.

“Hopefully, this competition will encourage even more students to step up and get involved.”

Those who competed were:

Dance solos: Georgia North and Sofia Reeves*.

Music solos: Isobella Allan and Pippa Vernon*.

Variety: Flossy Waters and Naledi Chingono; Lauren Harrison; and Lily Turrell*.

Dance ensembles: Jessica-Mae Whittington, Rose Wardle, Gabrille Hunt, Phoebe Hardwick and Hetal Stani; and Georgia North and Romilly Pirie*.

Music ensembles: Myles Johnston, Isaac Smith and Joshua Ellis-Thompson; Emily Harrison, Lyla Manders, Lydia-Jane Walker and Maja Bruce*; Archie Cannon, Thomas Johnson, Lenny Tindall, Charlton Logue and Vincent Lin.

Some of the winners with their certificates.